WICB Pres XI 233 (48.0 ov)
England 234/8 (48.5 ov)
England won by 2 wickets (with 7 balls remaining)
Monday 27 February 2017
Sunday 26 February 2017
5 Match ODI series ZIM 2-3 AFG
1st ODI
Afghanistan 215 (49.2 ov)
Zimbabwe 99/4 (27.2/27.2 ov, target 112)
Afghanistan won by 12 runs (D/L method)
A Zimbabwe wicket two balls before rain descended upon Harare helped Afghanistan complete a 12-run win courtesy Duckworth-Lewis. The hosts were ahead by a solitary run according to the D/L method at the beginning of the 28th over, but Rashid Khan's wicket of Ryan Burl - which reduced Zimbabwe to 99 for 4 - meant Afghanistan held the D/L advantage when the weather decided to play spoilsport.
Chasing 216, Zimbabwe lost both openers inside six overs. They lost their third wicket with their total at 44 in the 15th over, but a 55-run fourth-wicket partnership between Burl and Craig Ervine (38*) started what looked like a Zimbabwe recovery. Rashid trapped Burl in front of the stumps in the 28th over and Zimbabwe got no time to recover as the rain came down.
Afghanistan had chosen to bat but the hosts kept the visitors in check. After opener Mohammad Shahzad fell early, Noor Ali Zadran (39) and Rahmat Shah (31) added 67 runs for the second wicket. By the 25th over, Graeme Cremer removed both set batsmen before captain Asghar Stanikzai struck his seventh ODI half-century to help Afghanistan along. He scored 50, helping Afghanistan's total move past 150, before his dismissal was followed by a string of wickets towards the end of their innings. That meant they were all out in the 50th over for 215.
2nd ODI
Afghanistan 238/9 (50.0 ov)
Zimbabwe 184 (42.1 ov)
Afghanistan won by 54 runs
Afghanistan went 2-0 up against Zimbabwe in the five-match ODI series after their spinners Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi took three wickets each to skittle the hosts for 184 in a chase of 239 in Harare.
Zimbabwe suffered a dramatic collapse in their chase after a strong start from opener Solomon Mire - whose 54 was his highest ODI score - and Craig Ervine (34). Mire hit seven fours and a six and was involved in a 69-run stand for the first wicket with Peter Moor while Ervine and Ryal Burl (27) added 55 runs for the fourth wicket. When Ervine fell Zimbabwe were 139 for 4. They were bowled out 45 runs later as Nabi, Rashid and left-arm spinner Amir Hamza (2 for 40) ran through the hosts' middle and lower order.
Afghanistan chose to bat after winning the toss and reached 238 for 9 despite a late batting collapse. After Mohammad Shahzad (64), who struck his eighth ODI fifty, Rahmat Shah (53) and Nabi (33) set up a base for the visitors, late wickets from Tendai Chatara hurt Afghanistan; they lost their last four wickets for 26 runs. Najibullah Zadran held up one end to score 45 off 47 deliveries before he was the ninth man out, during the last over of Afghanistan's innings.
The third ODI, a must-win affair for Zimbabwe, will be on February 21 in Harare.
3rd ODI
Zimbabwe 129 (32.4 ov)
Afghanistan 126 (29.3 ov)
Zimbabwe won by 3 runs
Harare Sports Club. Afghanistan are cantering towards a target of 130. They need 16 runs more, off 24 overs, with five wickets in hand, to win a third successive ODI series against Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe have never defended so low a total in one-day internationals. The match is in the bag, right? Enter seamer Chris Mpofu. Add some handy work from wicketkeeper Peter Moor, vital spin support from Sean Williams, and rash batting from Afghanistan's middle and lower order, and what you have is an unbelievable three-run win for Zimbabwe.
There was no hint of the drama to come when Mpofu began the 27th over and new batsman Mohammad Nabi dispatched the first ball over long-off for six. He took a single next ball, and the well-set Samiullah Shenwari was back on strike. Afghanistan needed nine. Shenwari went after a short, wide one, and under-edged; the ball was dying on keeper Moor, but he dived forward and held on. The very next ball, new man Najibullah Zadran's shot selection was suspect - he tried to pull a short one from outside off - and top edged. Moor held on again.
Six needed off 23 overs, three wickets in hand. Left-arm spinner Williams, bowling his fifth over, tossed it up on middle and Nabi missed the cut. Bowled. Williams sent down a maiden. The first ball of the next over, the Mpofu-Moor pairing was at it again. This time it was a short ball angling down leg, which Rashid Khan edged to be caught behind. Another wicket maiden and it was back to Williams. No. 10 Amir Hamza managed to get two off the first ball, Graeme Cremer misfielding amid all the tension. He kept out the next one, but could not hold himself back off the third ball; a big swing at a delivery tossed up on off ended in the hands of Richard Ngarava at point. Zimbabwe had won by three runs, keeping the series alive. To complete their first ever ODI series victory against a spirited Afghanistan side, they will have to win the next two games too, on February 24 and 26.
Zimbabwe seemed to have little chance of staying in the series after their batting failed. The only contribution of note came from Tarisai Musakanda, who scored 60 out of their total of 129. Only one other batsmen - Malcolm Waller, who finished unbeaten on 36 - made it past 10 as the home side imploded in 32.4 overs. Much of the damage was done by the medium pace of Gulbadin Naib and the legspin of Rashid Khan, who must have still been in a happy daze from his success at the IPL auction. He was also on a hat-trick at one point in this match.
When the players broke for lunch, Afghanistan were comfortable at 63 for 3 in 13 overs with captain Asghar Stanikzai and Shenwari at the crease. New-ball bowler Tendai Chatara got Stanikzai soon after the interval, though - another catch to keeper Moor - helping Zimbabwe take a step towards one of the most stunning comebacks.
4th ODI
Afghanistan 111 (38.5/42 ov)
Zimbabwe 107/3 (22.2/42 ov, target 105)
Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets (with 118 balls remaining) (D/L method)
Solomon Mire and Peter Moor made light work of a rain-adjusted target of 105 in 42 overs, breaking the back of their run-chase in a 79-run opening stand to square the five-match series against Afghanistan, and set the teams up for a winner-takes-all showdown in Harare on Sunday.
After keeping the series alive in a thrilling three-run victory in Tuesday's third encounter, Zimbabwe drew level with considerably fewer nerves this time around, although they were once again indebted to the accurate seam of Chris Mpofu, who followed up his three-wicket haul in that match with 3 for 25 in 7.5 overs today as Afghanistan stumbled to 111 all out.
After winning the toss and batting first, Afghanistan's ambitions of a competitive total were dented from the outset by Tendai Chatara, who conceded a solitary run in his first three overs before extracting Ihsanullah for a 20-ball duck, caught at midwicket by Tarisai Musakanda.
Chatara then made it two in six balls when Rahmat Shah was bowled for 1, and one over later, Afghanistan had slumped to 12 for 3 when the dangerous Mohammad Shahzad tried to hit his way out of trouble, but instead slapped Richard Ngarava straight to midwicket for 9.
Asghar Stanikzai, the captain, and Hashmatullah Shahidi resisted for a while in adding 29 for the fourth wicket, but Zimbabwe's bowlers had the bit between their teeth. Mpofu accounted for both men in consecutive overs, both caught behind by Moor - the former a blinding take diving away to his right.
At 46 for 5, Graeme Cremer's legbreaks were exactly what Afghanistan's belligerent lower-order didn't want to face, and he twirled through an eight-over spell at the cost of just 12 runs to ensure there would be no recovery to Afghanistan's momentum. Samiullah Shenwari top-edged a sweep to Chatara at short fine leg for 13, before Moor held onto his third catch of the innings to dismiss Karim Janat for 9.
Afghanistan were reeling at 96 for 8 in the 35th over when rain forced a lengthy delay, and though they eked out a handful of extra runs upon resumption, Mpofu picked up his third when Rashid Khan holed out to cover to end the innings.
In reply, Mire and Moor started with intent, picking off regular boundaries to eat into the target, before Mire upped the ante with a pull for six off Janat to bring up Zimbabwe's fifty in the ninth over. He added a second two overs later, a meaty drill over the covers that required a replacement ball, and though he eventually holed out in the deep off Mohammad Nabi, his hard-hitting 46 from 50 balls had sealed the game.
Zimbabwe did wobble briefly, with Musakanda and Craig Ervine falling in consecutive overs, but with Moor steadfast, it was left to Sean Williams to complete a facile victory with almost 20 overs to spare.
5th ODI
Afghanistan 253/9 (50.0 ov)
Zimbabwe 54 (13.5/22 ov, target 161)
Afghanistan won by 106 runs (D/L method)
Afghanistan's bowlers combined to roll Zimbabwe over for 54, helping the visitors seal a 3-2 series win with a 106-run D/L victory in the final ODI in Harare.
Afghanistan elected to bat and were provided a brisk start thanks to opener Noor Ali Zadran's 49-ball 46, even as Zimbabwe got regular breakthroughs early on. Noor Ali eventually fell at the end of the 15th over, a wicket that put the brakes on Afghanistan's momentum as captain Asghar Stanikzai and Rahmat Shah tried to steady the innings from 85 for 3. The pair put on 39 off 64 balls, which was followed by a fifth-wicket stand of 35 between Shah and Samiullah Shenwari. After Rahmat reached his fifty, both he and Shenwari were run-out as Afghanistan found themselves at 172 for 6 at the 40-over mark.
Allrounder Mohammad Nabi then batted with the lower order, hitting four fours and a six in his 48 off 40 balls. Dawlat Zadran hit 14 off 6 balls to lift them to 253 for 9. Medium-pacer Chris Mpofu finished with figures of 3 for 46 while the spin duo of Graeme Cremer and Sean Williams kept things tight and conceded a combined 74 in 20 overs.
Zimbabwe's response was delayed by rain and a wet outfield, leaving them with a revised target of 161 off 22 overs. They suffered an early blow, losing Peter Moor in the second over. Three balls later, left-arm spinner Amir Hamza removed Solomon Mire, before returning two more wickets off four balls in his next over to reduce Zimbabwe to 13 for 4.
There was to be no recovery, with only two batsmen getting into double-figures, as Nabi and Rashid Khan - who were both picked up by the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the IPL auction earlier this week - took combined figures of 5 for 22. Rahmat was named Man of the Match for his fifty.
Afghanistan 215 (49.2 ov)
Zimbabwe 99/4 (27.2/27.2 ov, target 112)
Afghanistan won by 12 runs (D/L method)
A Zimbabwe wicket two balls before rain descended upon Harare helped Afghanistan complete a 12-run win courtesy Duckworth-Lewis. The hosts were ahead by a solitary run according to the D/L method at the beginning of the 28th over, but Rashid Khan's wicket of Ryan Burl - which reduced Zimbabwe to 99 for 4 - meant Afghanistan held the D/L advantage when the weather decided to play spoilsport.
Chasing 216, Zimbabwe lost both openers inside six overs. They lost their third wicket with their total at 44 in the 15th over, but a 55-run fourth-wicket partnership between Burl and Craig Ervine (38*) started what looked like a Zimbabwe recovery. Rashid trapped Burl in front of the stumps in the 28th over and Zimbabwe got no time to recover as the rain came down.
Afghanistan had chosen to bat but the hosts kept the visitors in check. After opener Mohammad Shahzad fell early, Noor Ali Zadran (39) and Rahmat Shah (31) added 67 runs for the second wicket. By the 25th over, Graeme Cremer removed both set batsmen before captain Asghar Stanikzai struck his seventh ODI half-century to help Afghanistan along. He scored 50, helping Afghanistan's total move past 150, before his dismissal was followed by a string of wickets towards the end of their innings. That meant they were all out in the 50th over for 215.
2nd ODI
Afghanistan 238/9 (50.0 ov)
Zimbabwe 184 (42.1 ov)
Afghanistan won by 54 runs
Afghanistan went 2-0 up against Zimbabwe in the five-match ODI series after their spinners Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi took three wickets each to skittle the hosts for 184 in a chase of 239 in Harare.
Zimbabwe suffered a dramatic collapse in their chase after a strong start from opener Solomon Mire - whose 54 was his highest ODI score - and Craig Ervine (34). Mire hit seven fours and a six and was involved in a 69-run stand for the first wicket with Peter Moor while Ervine and Ryal Burl (27) added 55 runs for the fourth wicket. When Ervine fell Zimbabwe were 139 for 4. They were bowled out 45 runs later as Nabi, Rashid and left-arm spinner Amir Hamza (2 for 40) ran through the hosts' middle and lower order.
Afghanistan chose to bat after winning the toss and reached 238 for 9 despite a late batting collapse. After Mohammad Shahzad (64), who struck his eighth ODI fifty, Rahmat Shah (53) and Nabi (33) set up a base for the visitors, late wickets from Tendai Chatara hurt Afghanistan; they lost their last four wickets for 26 runs. Najibullah Zadran held up one end to score 45 off 47 deliveries before he was the ninth man out, during the last over of Afghanistan's innings.
The third ODI, a must-win affair for Zimbabwe, will be on February 21 in Harare.
3rd ODI
Zimbabwe 129 (32.4 ov)
Afghanistan 126 (29.3 ov)
Zimbabwe won by 3 runs
Harare Sports Club. Afghanistan are cantering towards a target of 130. They need 16 runs more, off 24 overs, with five wickets in hand, to win a third successive ODI series against Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe have never defended so low a total in one-day internationals. The match is in the bag, right? Enter seamer Chris Mpofu. Add some handy work from wicketkeeper Peter Moor, vital spin support from Sean Williams, and rash batting from Afghanistan's middle and lower order, and what you have is an unbelievable three-run win for Zimbabwe.
There was no hint of the drama to come when Mpofu began the 27th over and new batsman Mohammad Nabi dispatched the first ball over long-off for six. He took a single next ball, and the well-set Samiullah Shenwari was back on strike. Afghanistan needed nine. Shenwari went after a short, wide one, and under-edged; the ball was dying on keeper Moor, but he dived forward and held on. The very next ball, new man Najibullah Zadran's shot selection was suspect - he tried to pull a short one from outside off - and top edged. Moor held on again.
Six needed off 23 overs, three wickets in hand. Left-arm spinner Williams, bowling his fifth over, tossed it up on middle and Nabi missed the cut. Bowled. Williams sent down a maiden. The first ball of the next over, the Mpofu-Moor pairing was at it again. This time it was a short ball angling down leg, which Rashid Khan edged to be caught behind. Another wicket maiden and it was back to Williams. No. 10 Amir Hamza managed to get two off the first ball, Graeme Cremer misfielding amid all the tension. He kept out the next one, but could not hold himself back off the third ball; a big swing at a delivery tossed up on off ended in the hands of Richard Ngarava at point. Zimbabwe had won by three runs, keeping the series alive. To complete their first ever ODI series victory against a spirited Afghanistan side, they will have to win the next two games too, on February 24 and 26.
Zimbabwe seemed to have little chance of staying in the series after their batting failed. The only contribution of note came from Tarisai Musakanda, who scored 60 out of their total of 129. Only one other batsmen - Malcolm Waller, who finished unbeaten on 36 - made it past 10 as the home side imploded in 32.4 overs. Much of the damage was done by the medium pace of Gulbadin Naib and the legspin of Rashid Khan, who must have still been in a happy daze from his success at the IPL auction. He was also on a hat-trick at one point in this match.
When the players broke for lunch, Afghanistan were comfortable at 63 for 3 in 13 overs with captain Asghar Stanikzai and Shenwari at the crease. New-ball bowler Tendai Chatara got Stanikzai soon after the interval, though - another catch to keeper Moor - helping Zimbabwe take a step towards one of the most stunning comebacks.
4th ODI
Afghanistan 111 (38.5/42 ov)
Zimbabwe 107/3 (22.2/42 ov, target 105)
Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets (with 118 balls remaining) (D/L method)
Solomon Mire and Peter Moor made light work of a rain-adjusted target of 105 in 42 overs, breaking the back of their run-chase in a 79-run opening stand to square the five-match series against Afghanistan, and set the teams up for a winner-takes-all showdown in Harare on Sunday.
After keeping the series alive in a thrilling three-run victory in Tuesday's third encounter, Zimbabwe drew level with considerably fewer nerves this time around, although they were once again indebted to the accurate seam of Chris Mpofu, who followed up his three-wicket haul in that match with 3 for 25 in 7.5 overs today as Afghanistan stumbled to 111 all out.
After winning the toss and batting first, Afghanistan's ambitions of a competitive total were dented from the outset by Tendai Chatara, who conceded a solitary run in his first three overs before extracting Ihsanullah for a 20-ball duck, caught at midwicket by Tarisai Musakanda.
Chatara then made it two in six balls when Rahmat Shah was bowled for 1, and one over later, Afghanistan had slumped to 12 for 3 when the dangerous Mohammad Shahzad tried to hit his way out of trouble, but instead slapped Richard Ngarava straight to midwicket for 9.
Asghar Stanikzai, the captain, and Hashmatullah Shahidi resisted for a while in adding 29 for the fourth wicket, but Zimbabwe's bowlers had the bit between their teeth. Mpofu accounted for both men in consecutive overs, both caught behind by Moor - the former a blinding take diving away to his right.
At 46 for 5, Graeme Cremer's legbreaks were exactly what Afghanistan's belligerent lower-order didn't want to face, and he twirled through an eight-over spell at the cost of just 12 runs to ensure there would be no recovery to Afghanistan's momentum. Samiullah Shenwari top-edged a sweep to Chatara at short fine leg for 13, before Moor held onto his third catch of the innings to dismiss Karim Janat for 9.
Afghanistan were reeling at 96 for 8 in the 35th over when rain forced a lengthy delay, and though they eked out a handful of extra runs upon resumption, Mpofu picked up his third when Rashid Khan holed out to cover to end the innings.
In reply, Mire and Moor started with intent, picking off regular boundaries to eat into the target, before Mire upped the ante with a pull for six off Janat to bring up Zimbabwe's fifty in the ninth over. He added a second two overs later, a meaty drill over the covers that required a replacement ball, and though he eventually holed out in the deep off Mohammad Nabi, his hard-hitting 46 from 50 balls had sealed the game.
Zimbabwe did wobble briefly, with Musakanda and Craig Ervine falling in consecutive overs, but with Moor steadfast, it was left to Sean Williams to complete a facile victory with almost 20 overs to spare.
5th ODI
Afghanistan 253/9 (50.0 ov)
Zimbabwe 54 (13.5/22 ov, target 161)
Afghanistan won by 106 runs (D/L method)
Afghanistan's bowlers combined to roll Zimbabwe over for 54, helping the visitors seal a 3-2 series win with a 106-run D/L victory in the final ODI in Harare.
Afghanistan elected to bat and were provided a brisk start thanks to opener Noor Ali Zadran's 49-ball 46, even as Zimbabwe got regular breakthroughs early on. Noor Ali eventually fell at the end of the 15th over, a wicket that put the brakes on Afghanistan's momentum as captain Asghar Stanikzai and Rahmat Shah tried to steady the innings from 85 for 3. The pair put on 39 off 64 balls, which was followed by a fifth-wicket stand of 35 between Shah and Samiullah Shenwari. After Rahmat reached his fifty, both he and Shenwari were run-out as Afghanistan found themselves at 172 for 6 at the 40-over mark.
Allrounder Mohammad Nabi then batted with the lower order, hitting four fours and a six in his 48 off 40 balls. Dawlat Zadran hit 14 off 6 balls to lift them to 253 for 9. Medium-pacer Chris Mpofu finished with figures of 3 for 46 while the spin duo of Graeme Cremer and Sean Williams kept things tight and conceded a combined 74 in 20 overs.
Zimbabwe's response was delayed by rain and a wet outfield, leaving them with a revised target of 161 off 22 overs. They suffered an early blow, losing Peter Moor in the second over. Three balls later, left-arm spinner Amir Hamza removed Solomon Mire, before returning two more wickets off four balls in his next over to reduce Zimbabwe to 13 for 4.
There was to be no recovery, with only two batsmen getting into double-figures, as Nabi and Rashid Khan - who were both picked up by the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the IPL auction earlier this week - took combined figures of 5 for 22. Rahmat was named Man of the Match for his fifty.
Wednesday 22 February 2017
3 Match T20 series AUS 1-2 SL
1st T20
Australia 168/6 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 172/5 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets (with 0 balls remaining)
Australia's "best of the Big Bash League" took Sri Lanka to the final ball. The hosts and their three debutants fought to the finish against the visitors in front of a raucous crowd at the MCG, but a win offered Sri Lanka the chance to wrap up the series at Kardinia Park on Sunday.
The Perth Scorchers' Andrew Tye was left with six runs to defend from the final over, and one from the final ball. Chamara Kapugedara surveyed the ring field then punched the winning boundary through the covers to secure the result. His composure ensured Sri Lanka finished in the ascendant after looking the more likely victors throughout their chase, largely due to a boundary count that outstripped the hosts, 21 to 13.
None of Australia's batsmen were able to go on to substantial scores after Upul Tharanga sent them in to bat, as a spongy pitch and disciplined Sri Lankan bowling denied them the ability to find a domineering rhythm. Sri Lanka's pursuit was then given the desired fast start by Dilshan Munaweera after Tharanga was dismissed in the first over, and Asela Gunaratne's nimble half-century guided the tourists to within sight of victory in front of 42,511 spectators, many of them barracking for Sri Lanka.
Gunaratne also made a brief but notable contribution with the ball, goading the captain Aaron Finch into a skier after he had appeared the man most likely to produce a truly damaging tally for Australia. The dismissal came two balls after Finch had hammered the biggest six of the night, and 10 runs after Michael Klinger's long delayed international debut was ended.
Lasith Malinga, making his own return from a long absence, bowled tidily and scooped a couple of late wickets, while Seekkuge Prasanna gave up a mere 23 runs from four overs that featured 10 dot balls and should have been rewarded with the wicket of Travis Head - dropped badly by Tharanga at point.
Tharanga's night did not improve when he opened the batting, as he received a perfectly pitched ball going across him from Pat Cummins in the first over and offered a thin edge through to Tim Paine behind the stumps. While the Australians celebrated this wicket with some gusto, they were soon haring about the MCG outfield as Munaweera and Niroshan Dickwella went to work.
Their partnership ensured the run rate was not going to be much of an issue, compelling Finch and his bowlers to chase wickets and consequentially offer more scoring opportunities. Adam Zampa delivered his usual handy spell and deserved his two wickets, but oddly Finch did not try his other spin options until introducing Ashton Turner with only a modest equation required.
Turner's offbreaks were rewarded by a smart Paine stumping to end Gunaratne's innings just when he appeared to be coasting home, before a debatable lbw verdict against Milinda Siriwardana closed the gap between the teams. In the end, Kapugedara was left needing a single from the final delivery, an assignment he made light work of with a steely drive for four.
Klinger, Turner and Billy Stanlake were all named for their first T20 appearances for Australia but there was no room for Ben Dunk and only three specialist batsmen selected - Finch, Head and Klinger. The visitors included the left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan, who was so effective against Australia in the Test series in Sri Lanka last year.
Malinga kicked off the evening with his first ball in a full international since February last year, and also bowled the first ball faced by Klinger in an international match no fewer than 19 years after his state debut. The pitch was a little on the sluggish side, but Klinger and the acting captain Finch made a decent start with a smattering of boundaries and hustling between the wickets.
They had 76 on the board by the time Klinger tried to tug a Sandakan googly to the leg side and was pouched by Malinga via the resultant top edge. Finch had his eye on a big score as leader, but after depositing Gunaratne's first ball well into the Great Southern Stand he tried to repeat the trick two balls later against an offcutter and popped another high catch.
From there the innings was a sequence of fits and starts, as Head, Moises Henriques, Turner and James Faulkner all offered cameo contributions. However, Prasanna's spell was particularly tidy, Sri Lanka did well to keep the boundary count down - only seven fours and four sixes in total - and two wickets in successive balls for Malinga in his final over also served to aid the tourists' ultimately winning cause.
2nd T20
Australia 173 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 176/8 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka won by 2 wickets (with 0 balls remaining)
Asela Gunaratne orchestrated a remarkable heist to seal the T20 series for Sri Lanka with a match to play, stealing an outrageous victory over Australia in the first international match ever played at Geelong's Kardinia Park. For the second time in three days, Sri Lanka reached their target from the final ball of their chase, but whereas at the MCG they had needed only 18 off the last three overs, here they needed 48. Gunaratne ensured that they did it in style.
Forty-eight off 18 balls became 36 off 12, and then came the over that turned things firmly in Sri Lanka's favour. Moises Henriques, who earlier had struck an unbeaten half-century to set Sri Lanka a target of 174, failed to find the right lengths and was plundered for three consecutive sixes by Gunaratne, as well as a four, and it left them requiring 14 from the final over, to be bowled by Andrew Tye.
Although Tye struck with the first ball - Nuwan Kulasekara caught skying a slog - the batsmen had crossed, and Gunaratne was back on strike. Full toss, four down the ground. Six over mid-off. And then, surprisingly, a single, which brought Lasith Malinga on strike needing three off two. Malinga found the single he needed, and Gunaratne crunched the match-winning four over cover, to finish unbeaten on 84 from 46 deliveries.
The Sri Lankan squad poured onto Kardinia Park to celebrate winning the series in front of a 13,647-strong crowd, a hefty percentage of which were Sri Lankan fans. Remarkably, the win meant Sri Lanka held a 5-0 record over Australia in T20s in Australia. The best Australia can now hope for is to make that 5-1 after the third match of the series at Adelaide Oval this Wednesday.
Yet for most of the chase, Australia appeared to be in control. They had Sri Lanka five down within five overs. The rain that both sides feared might affect the game had stayed away, but still it was threatening to become a damp squib. Tye had struck twice in an over, the debutant Jhye Richardson claimed a wicket with his third ball of international cricket, and Ashton Turner had got rid of Sri Lanka's captain Upul Tharanga in the very first over of the innings.
But the small boundaries meant that while Gunaratne remained, Sri Lanka were never out of the contest. He began the rebuild with a 52-run stand with Chamara Kapugedara, which ended when Kapugedara was well caught by Ben Dunk, leaping at mid-off like an AFL player taking a mark above his head. Still, Gunaratne had enough partners, though Australia's captain Aaron Finch conceded after the match that his team had done too little to keep Gunaratne off strike.
Slowly at first and then quickly at the end, he had brought Sri Lanka back into the game. Their bowlers, though, had helped by restricting Australia in the final few overs of the first innings. Australia had cruised to 2 for 111 after 13 overs, the kind of platform from which a total nearing 200 could be achieved, but Sri Lanka found a way to halt the momentum and Australia were bowled out for 173 from the last ball of the 20th over.
The runs came largely at the top of the order - nobody outside the top four reached double-figures. Henriques, whose eight T20Is have been spread fairly evenly over eight years, made an unbeaten 56; Michael Klinger, playing his first international series at the age of 36, scored a composed 43; Dunk, a regular run-basher in the BBL, completed a whirlwind cameo of 32 off 14. But as the batsmen departed, the runs slowed, and only 14 came off the final two overs for the loss of four wickets.
Malinga picked up two important late wickets, trapping both James Faulkner and Tim Paine lbw cheaply, and Nuwan Kulasekara struck three times in the final over of the innings. Australia had needed one of their established men to stick around until the end, but the innings petered out. After Sri Lanka's early stumbles, the match itself looked like petering out too. Only Gunaratne knew differently.
3rd T20I
Australia 187/6 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 146 (18/20 ov)
Australia won by 41 runs
Adam Zampa's dismantling of Sri Lanka arrived too late to salvage the series for Australia, and also too late for his skiddy, accurate wristspin to be considered for the Test team to face India in Pune from Thursday.
The frequent omission of Zampa from Australia's ODI and Twenty20 sides - despite an excellent record in both formats - has been a mystery for quite some time, and there appeared to be thinly veiled frustration on the part of the bowler as he accounted for the series' pivotal player Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedara and Dasun Shanaka in quick succession to push a target of 188 beyond the reach of the visitors.
His wickets came not from any extravagant turn but instead useful changes of pace and unrelenting attack on the stumps, winning a pair of back foot lbw verdicts from the umpire Paul Wilson either side of another slider that bowled Kapugedara between bat and pad. Australia's selectors had admitted to choosing an "attacking" spinner in Mitchell Swepson over what the panel's chairman Trevor Hohns called a more "defensive" operator in Zampa.
Sri Lanka made a rapid start to their chase but a sturdy Australian effort with the bat meant that they did not have much room to lose momentum. The captain Aaron Finch and his opening partner Michael Klinger both contributed half centuries, before Ben Dunk and Travis Head provided aggressive support through the middle overs.
At 0 for 41 in the fourth over, the visitors appeared well in control of proceedings, largely due to the early pyrotechnics of Dilshan Munaweera - including 20 runs off Jhye Richardson's opening over. However, James Fulkner, Richardson and Head each coaxed outfield catches from Sri Lanka's top-order batsmen, before Zampa arrived to attack the stumps with quite compelling effect.
Those wickets meant that Gunaratne was not around to perform his third Houdini act in succession, and left Faulkner to lead the mop-up operation and the Australians to enjoy the consolation of a win in the final home international of the summer. Australia will next be glimpsed in coloured clothing at the ODI Champions Trophy in May and June.
The hosts had recalled Zampa in place of Andrew Tye for the dead rubber, banking on his spin bowling at the ground where he also plays for South Australia. Sri Lanka called in Shanaka in place of the suspended Niroshan Dickwella, leaving Kusal Mendis to take over the wicketkeeper's gloves and Munaweera to open.
Finch had a hearty slice of good fortune in the first over of the evening when he tugged Lasith Malinga to midwicket and was dropped by Munaweera. He made up for it with a series of meaty blows inside the powerplay, while Klinger took some more time to get himself moving.
The openers were parted at a healthy 79 in the ninth over, before Ben Dunk and then Travis Head offered further acceleration. At one point a tally beyond 200 looked more than plausible, but Head's exit and the run out of a steadily building Klinger left the innings to peter out somewhat in the final overs. On a good pitch it appeared an open chase, before Zampa closed the door with some panache.
Australia 168/6 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 172/5 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets (with 0 balls remaining)
Australia's "best of the Big Bash League" took Sri Lanka to the final ball. The hosts and their three debutants fought to the finish against the visitors in front of a raucous crowd at the MCG, but a win offered Sri Lanka the chance to wrap up the series at Kardinia Park on Sunday.
The Perth Scorchers' Andrew Tye was left with six runs to defend from the final over, and one from the final ball. Chamara Kapugedara surveyed the ring field then punched the winning boundary through the covers to secure the result. His composure ensured Sri Lanka finished in the ascendant after looking the more likely victors throughout their chase, largely due to a boundary count that outstripped the hosts, 21 to 13.
None of Australia's batsmen were able to go on to substantial scores after Upul Tharanga sent them in to bat, as a spongy pitch and disciplined Sri Lankan bowling denied them the ability to find a domineering rhythm. Sri Lanka's pursuit was then given the desired fast start by Dilshan Munaweera after Tharanga was dismissed in the first over, and Asela Gunaratne's nimble half-century guided the tourists to within sight of victory in front of 42,511 spectators, many of them barracking for Sri Lanka.
Gunaratne also made a brief but notable contribution with the ball, goading the captain Aaron Finch into a skier after he had appeared the man most likely to produce a truly damaging tally for Australia. The dismissal came two balls after Finch had hammered the biggest six of the night, and 10 runs after Michael Klinger's long delayed international debut was ended.
Lasith Malinga, making his own return from a long absence, bowled tidily and scooped a couple of late wickets, while Seekkuge Prasanna gave up a mere 23 runs from four overs that featured 10 dot balls and should have been rewarded with the wicket of Travis Head - dropped badly by Tharanga at point.
Tharanga's night did not improve when he opened the batting, as he received a perfectly pitched ball going across him from Pat Cummins in the first over and offered a thin edge through to Tim Paine behind the stumps. While the Australians celebrated this wicket with some gusto, they were soon haring about the MCG outfield as Munaweera and Niroshan Dickwella went to work.
Their partnership ensured the run rate was not going to be much of an issue, compelling Finch and his bowlers to chase wickets and consequentially offer more scoring opportunities. Adam Zampa delivered his usual handy spell and deserved his two wickets, but oddly Finch did not try his other spin options until introducing Ashton Turner with only a modest equation required.
Turner's offbreaks were rewarded by a smart Paine stumping to end Gunaratne's innings just when he appeared to be coasting home, before a debatable lbw verdict against Milinda Siriwardana closed the gap between the teams. In the end, Kapugedara was left needing a single from the final delivery, an assignment he made light work of with a steely drive for four.
Klinger, Turner and Billy Stanlake were all named for their first T20 appearances for Australia but there was no room for Ben Dunk and only three specialist batsmen selected - Finch, Head and Klinger. The visitors included the left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan, who was so effective against Australia in the Test series in Sri Lanka last year.
Malinga kicked off the evening with his first ball in a full international since February last year, and also bowled the first ball faced by Klinger in an international match no fewer than 19 years after his state debut. The pitch was a little on the sluggish side, but Klinger and the acting captain Finch made a decent start with a smattering of boundaries and hustling between the wickets.
They had 76 on the board by the time Klinger tried to tug a Sandakan googly to the leg side and was pouched by Malinga via the resultant top edge. Finch had his eye on a big score as leader, but after depositing Gunaratne's first ball well into the Great Southern Stand he tried to repeat the trick two balls later against an offcutter and popped another high catch.
From there the innings was a sequence of fits and starts, as Head, Moises Henriques, Turner and James Faulkner all offered cameo contributions. However, Prasanna's spell was particularly tidy, Sri Lanka did well to keep the boundary count down - only seven fours and four sixes in total - and two wickets in successive balls for Malinga in his final over also served to aid the tourists' ultimately winning cause.
2nd T20
Australia 173 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 176/8 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka won by 2 wickets (with 0 balls remaining)
Asela Gunaratne orchestrated a remarkable heist to seal the T20 series for Sri Lanka with a match to play, stealing an outrageous victory over Australia in the first international match ever played at Geelong's Kardinia Park. For the second time in three days, Sri Lanka reached their target from the final ball of their chase, but whereas at the MCG they had needed only 18 off the last three overs, here they needed 48. Gunaratne ensured that they did it in style.
Forty-eight off 18 balls became 36 off 12, and then came the over that turned things firmly in Sri Lanka's favour. Moises Henriques, who earlier had struck an unbeaten half-century to set Sri Lanka a target of 174, failed to find the right lengths and was plundered for three consecutive sixes by Gunaratne, as well as a four, and it left them requiring 14 from the final over, to be bowled by Andrew Tye.
Although Tye struck with the first ball - Nuwan Kulasekara caught skying a slog - the batsmen had crossed, and Gunaratne was back on strike. Full toss, four down the ground. Six over mid-off. And then, surprisingly, a single, which brought Lasith Malinga on strike needing three off two. Malinga found the single he needed, and Gunaratne crunched the match-winning four over cover, to finish unbeaten on 84 from 46 deliveries.
The Sri Lankan squad poured onto Kardinia Park to celebrate winning the series in front of a 13,647-strong crowd, a hefty percentage of which were Sri Lankan fans. Remarkably, the win meant Sri Lanka held a 5-0 record over Australia in T20s in Australia. The best Australia can now hope for is to make that 5-1 after the third match of the series at Adelaide Oval this Wednesday.
Yet for most of the chase, Australia appeared to be in control. They had Sri Lanka five down within five overs. The rain that both sides feared might affect the game had stayed away, but still it was threatening to become a damp squib. Tye had struck twice in an over, the debutant Jhye Richardson claimed a wicket with his third ball of international cricket, and Ashton Turner had got rid of Sri Lanka's captain Upul Tharanga in the very first over of the innings.
But the small boundaries meant that while Gunaratne remained, Sri Lanka were never out of the contest. He began the rebuild with a 52-run stand with Chamara Kapugedara, which ended when Kapugedara was well caught by Ben Dunk, leaping at mid-off like an AFL player taking a mark above his head. Still, Gunaratne had enough partners, though Australia's captain Aaron Finch conceded after the match that his team had done too little to keep Gunaratne off strike.
Slowly at first and then quickly at the end, he had brought Sri Lanka back into the game. Their bowlers, though, had helped by restricting Australia in the final few overs of the first innings. Australia had cruised to 2 for 111 after 13 overs, the kind of platform from which a total nearing 200 could be achieved, but Sri Lanka found a way to halt the momentum and Australia were bowled out for 173 from the last ball of the 20th over.
The runs came largely at the top of the order - nobody outside the top four reached double-figures. Henriques, whose eight T20Is have been spread fairly evenly over eight years, made an unbeaten 56; Michael Klinger, playing his first international series at the age of 36, scored a composed 43; Dunk, a regular run-basher in the BBL, completed a whirlwind cameo of 32 off 14. But as the batsmen departed, the runs slowed, and only 14 came off the final two overs for the loss of four wickets.
Malinga picked up two important late wickets, trapping both James Faulkner and Tim Paine lbw cheaply, and Nuwan Kulasekara struck three times in the final over of the innings. Australia had needed one of their established men to stick around until the end, but the innings petered out. After Sri Lanka's early stumbles, the match itself looked like petering out too. Only Gunaratne knew differently.
3rd T20I
Australia 187/6 (20/20 ov)
Sri Lanka 146 (18/20 ov)
Australia won by 41 runs
Adam Zampa's dismantling of Sri Lanka arrived too late to salvage the series for Australia, and also too late for his skiddy, accurate wristspin to be considered for the Test team to face India in Pune from Thursday.
The frequent omission of Zampa from Australia's ODI and Twenty20 sides - despite an excellent record in both formats - has been a mystery for quite some time, and there appeared to be thinly veiled frustration on the part of the bowler as he accounted for the series' pivotal player Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedara and Dasun Shanaka in quick succession to push a target of 188 beyond the reach of the visitors.
His wickets came not from any extravagant turn but instead useful changes of pace and unrelenting attack on the stumps, winning a pair of back foot lbw verdicts from the umpire Paul Wilson either side of another slider that bowled Kapugedara between bat and pad. Australia's selectors had admitted to choosing an "attacking" spinner in Mitchell Swepson over what the panel's chairman Trevor Hohns called a more "defensive" operator in Zampa.
Sri Lanka made a rapid start to their chase but a sturdy Australian effort with the bat meant that they did not have much room to lose momentum. The captain Aaron Finch and his opening partner Michael Klinger both contributed half centuries, before Ben Dunk and Travis Head provided aggressive support through the middle overs.
At 0 for 41 in the fourth over, the visitors appeared well in control of proceedings, largely due to the early pyrotechnics of Dilshan Munaweera - including 20 runs off Jhye Richardson's opening over. However, James Fulkner, Richardson and Head each coaxed outfield catches from Sri Lanka's top-order batsmen, before Zampa arrived to attack the stumps with quite compelling effect.
Those wickets meant that Gunaratne was not around to perform his third Houdini act in succession, and left Faulkner to lead the mop-up operation and the Australians to enjoy the consolation of a win in the final home international of the summer. Australia will next be glimpsed in coloured clothing at the ODI Champions Trophy in May and June.
The hosts had recalled Zampa in place of Andrew Tye for the dead rubber, banking on his spin bowling at the ground where he also plays for South Australia. Sri Lanka called in Shanaka in place of the suspended Niroshan Dickwella, leaving Kusal Mendis to take over the wicketkeeper's gloves and Munaweera to open.
Finch had a hearty slice of good fortune in the first over of the evening when he tugged Lasith Malinga to midwicket and was dropped by Munaweera. He made up for it with a series of meaty blows inside the powerplay, while Klinger took some more time to get himself moving.
The openers were parted at a healthy 79 in the ninth over, before Ben Dunk and then Travis Head offered further acceleration. At one point a tally beyond 200 looked more than plausible, but Head's exit and the run out of a steadily building Klinger left the innings to peter out somewhat in the final overs. On a good pitch it appeared an open chase, before Zampa closed the door with some panache.
Friday 17 February 2017
Only T20 NZ 0-1 SA
South Africa 185/6 (20/20 ov)
New Zealand 107 (14.5/20 ov)
South Africa won by 78 runs
It won't come close to making up for losing that World Cup semi-final but South Africa emerged the victors at Eden Park this time, and in convincing style. In turn it ended New Zealand's unbeaten home season as they slumped to 107 in the chase, set back by two early wickets for Chris Morris and finished off by Imran Tahir's career-best 5 for 24.
Hashim Amla's classy 62 formed the centrepiece of South Africa's 185 for 6 and if that felt a little underwhelming after a sticky final five overs, a double-wicket maiden by Morris soon had New Zealand on the back foot. He was followed Andile Phehlukwayo, who took three wickets, but the finishing touches belonged to Tahir, the No. 1 T20 and ODI bowler, as he became the second-quickest to 50 T20I wickets and was the second man on a hat-trick for the innings.
For all Tahir's success to end the match, the Powerplay difference was telling: South Africa made 56 for 1 - as Amla scooted away - while New Zealand sat at 34 for 2 on the back of losing debutant Glenn Phillips and Colin Munro in consecutive balls to Morris whose second over was also a maiden. Phillips could be forgiven for his nervy innings, but Munro's swing across the line of a full delivery was ugly for a more experienced player.
Dane Paterson, who played ahead of the rested Kagiso Rabada, helped set the tone with just seven runs coming off his first 11 deliveries - like Morris, hitting a back-of-a-length area and getting a bit of zip under the lights - before Tom Bruce took him for six.
But New Zealand couldn't break free and Phehlukwayo strengthened South Africa's position when he had Kane Williamson taken at deep square-leg. It was soon a full-fledged collapse as Corey Anderson and Bruce fell swinging and Luke Ronchi nicked his first ball from Tahir who became the third South Africa bowler to take five wickets in a T20I.
It was a little remarkable that there was a match at all given the volume of rain which had fallen in two days. There was some early swing but Amla, one of the South Africa players rested from the T20 series against Sri Lanka, batted serenely. He took a liking to Ben Wheeler's first two overs, collecting six boundaries in all including four in a row at the start of the fifth over. He zipped to his half-century off 32 balls, was given a life on 61 when Ronchi missed a stumping but fell shortly afterwards when he hoicked into the deep.
Faf du Plessis, who enjoyed a productive home season, added 87 off 51 balls for the second wicket with Amla and he twice deposited Mitchell Santner into the stands straight down the ground. He was given a life on 34, when Santner made a mess of a skier at point, but fell the next over. By then, however, the platform had been set for South Africa to press for 200.
After Amla fell, AB de Villiers was just threatening to go through the gears when he lofted Colin de Grandhomme to mid-off midway through the 16th over and South Africa couldn't quite summon the finish that had been on the cards despite JP Duminy's best efforts.
The final five overs brought 46 runs and included the completion of an outstanding four overs from Trent Boult. Earlier he had removed Quinton de Kock for a duck, during an opening two-over spell which cost two runs, then returned to bowl the 11th for just four (and was the bowler to suffer from Santner's drop) then finished his quota with a two-run 19th over. It gave him the second-most economical return by a New Zealand paceman in T20Is. But that was the only bright spot for them.
New Zealand 107 (14.5/20 ov)
South Africa won by 78 runs
It won't come close to making up for losing that World Cup semi-final but South Africa emerged the victors at Eden Park this time, and in convincing style. In turn it ended New Zealand's unbeaten home season as they slumped to 107 in the chase, set back by two early wickets for Chris Morris and finished off by Imran Tahir's career-best 5 for 24.
Hashim Amla's classy 62 formed the centrepiece of South Africa's 185 for 6 and if that felt a little underwhelming after a sticky final five overs, a double-wicket maiden by Morris soon had New Zealand on the back foot. He was followed Andile Phehlukwayo, who took three wickets, but the finishing touches belonged to Tahir, the No. 1 T20 and ODI bowler, as he became the second-quickest to 50 T20I wickets and was the second man on a hat-trick for the innings.
For all Tahir's success to end the match, the Powerplay difference was telling: South Africa made 56 for 1 - as Amla scooted away - while New Zealand sat at 34 for 2 on the back of losing debutant Glenn Phillips and Colin Munro in consecutive balls to Morris whose second over was also a maiden. Phillips could be forgiven for his nervy innings, but Munro's swing across the line of a full delivery was ugly for a more experienced player.
Dane Paterson, who played ahead of the rested Kagiso Rabada, helped set the tone with just seven runs coming off his first 11 deliveries - like Morris, hitting a back-of-a-length area and getting a bit of zip under the lights - before Tom Bruce took him for six.
But New Zealand couldn't break free and Phehlukwayo strengthened South Africa's position when he had Kane Williamson taken at deep square-leg. It was soon a full-fledged collapse as Corey Anderson and Bruce fell swinging and Luke Ronchi nicked his first ball from Tahir who became the third South Africa bowler to take five wickets in a T20I.
It was a little remarkable that there was a match at all given the volume of rain which had fallen in two days. There was some early swing but Amla, one of the South Africa players rested from the T20 series against Sri Lanka, batted serenely. He took a liking to Ben Wheeler's first two overs, collecting six boundaries in all including four in a row at the start of the fifth over. He zipped to his half-century off 32 balls, was given a life on 61 when Ronchi missed a stumping but fell shortly afterwards when he hoicked into the deep.
Faf du Plessis, who enjoyed a productive home season, added 87 off 51 balls for the second wicket with Amla and he twice deposited Mitchell Santner into the stands straight down the ground. He was given a life on 34, when Santner made a mess of a skier at point, but fell the next over. By then, however, the platform had been set for South Africa to press for 200.
After Amla fell, AB de Villiers was just threatening to go through the gears when he lofted Colin de Grandhomme to mid-off midway through the 16th over and South Africa couldn't quite summon the finish that had been on the cards despite JP Duminy's best efforts.
The final five overs brought 46 runs and included the completion of an outstanding four overs from Trent Boult. Earlier he had removed Quinton de Kock for a duck, during an opening two-over spell which cost two runs, then returned to bowl the 11th for just four (and was the bowler to suffer from Santner's drop) then finished his quota with a two-run 19th over. It gave him the second-most economical return by a New Zealand paceman in T20Is. But that was the only bright spot for them.
Monday 13 February 2017
Joe Root is named new England Test Captain
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| England's new test captain an inspired choice |
Joe Root is named as England's new Test captain.
The Yorkshire batsman, 26, replaces Alastair Cook, who resigned after more than four years in charge last week.
England do not play their next Test match until meeting South Africa at Lord's in July, when Root will become the 80th man to lead the country in the longest form of the game.
No batsman has made more than Root's 4,594 runs since he made his Test debut in December 2012.
In the same time period, only India captain Virat Kohli has scored more runs than Root in all forms of international cricket.
An announcement from the England and Wales Cricket Board is expected on Monday to confirm Root has stepped up from vice-captain, a position he has held since 2015.
Cook resigned on 6 February after a record 59 Tests at the helm.
Before the tour of India at the end of last year, the 32-year-old opener said he was looking forward to not being captain.
As England moved towards a 4-0 series defeat, Cook increased speculation over his future by saying he was questioning his position.
After he resigned, he confirmed he would like to continue at the top of the order, with England director of cricket Andrew Strauss leading the process to appoint a successor.
Root, all-rounder Ben Stokes, pace bowler Stuart Broad and one-day vice-captain Jos Buttler were all consulted.
But Root was always seen as the clear favourite and was offered the job over the weekend.
With England concentrating on limited-overs cricket for the first part of 2017, Root will not properly pick up the reins for almost five months,
However, after the visits of South Africa and West Indies, he will lead England to Australia for the defence of the Ashes.
Root takes the job with very little captaincy experience - he has only ever skippered in four first-class matches.
However, he likened taking over as leader to becoming a father, a baby son having arrived in January.
"Being a dad, you don't really know what to do until you have to go with it," he told the BBC before Cook's resignation.
"I imagine being captain would be very similar. Until you're in that position I don't think you know.
"I've got quite a lot experience in Test cricket now, but it's one of these things you have to learn on the job."
The ECB announces the current vice-captain has succeeded to become the 80th captain of the England Test team.
He will be supported by Ben Stokes as England vice-captain.
Colin Graves, Chairman of the ECB, said: “Joe Root is the perfect choice for England Test captain.
"I’m delighted that he has accepted the role and will now help to take the team to the next level."
Only Test IND 1-0 BAN
Day 1
India 356/3 (90.0 ov)
Bangladesh
India won the toss and elected to bat
M Vijay, who was reprieved on 35, and his captain Virat Kohli punished Bangladesh with contrasting centuries, which led India to 356 for 3 on the first day in in Hyderabad. Vijay combined with Cheteshwar Pujara, who was handed a life on 11, in a 178-run partnership, before Kohli seamlessly took charge of the innings.
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim termed his side's first bilateral international in India as a "great moment"; he might have later felt it was a wild roller-coaster ride. At the end of the day, in which Bangladesh's fielding went from bad to worse, they were left nauseous and with a teasing thought: what might have been?
Pujara and Vijay, India's most prolific pair in Test cricket in the last decade, extended their dominance on Thursday with another century partnership, their fifth this home season and eighth overall.
Kohli looked like he was on autopilot right from the moment he arrived, 30 minutes before tea. He began with two fours off his first three balls, the second of which was punched fiercely to the long-off boundary. He brought up his fifty off 70 balls at the end of the 73rd over, then brought up his next fifty off 60 balls with a signature whiplash to the midwicket boundary. Kohli now has a Test hundred against every opposition he has played against (he has not played against Pakistan and Zimbabwe).
Bangladesh, though, had enjoyed the perfect start to their first bilateral international in India with fast bowler Taskin Ahmed removing KL Rahul in the first over. Rahul chased a full, wide ball - wider than a set of stumps outside off - and dragged it back onto the stumps. Taskin and Kamrul Islam Rabbi then found movement in the air and off the seam, and took regular trips past the edges. They also sent down rising short balls, which forced Vijay and Pujara to throw their gloves in front of their faces.
At the end of five overs, India had only played four scoring shots. The first boundary arrived in the next over when Pujara uncharacteristically drove away from the body and sent an outside edge flying to his right of gully.
Four balls later, Pujara watched a leading edge drop in front of cover. About three overs later, Kamrul drew an outside edge from Pujara, which dropped well in front of Shakib Al Hasan at first slip. Mushfiqur could possibly have caught it had he dived to his right, but he was unmoved. Then, in the 15th over, Mehedi Hasan Miraz produced an outside edge each from Pujara and Vijay, which flew to the right of Shakib at slip.
Vijay's major reprieve came when he and Pujara found themselves at the same end. Kamrul put in the dive at square leg to create the run-out chance, and lobbed the ball back to Mehedi, the bowler. With the ball travelling slowly to him, Mehedi panicked and failed to collect the throw cleanly.
India enjoyed these breaks in the field but the runs began to flow only after lunch. Vijay drove fluently through the covers and launched Shakib straight back over his head. Pujara brought out his staple shots - the bottom-handed drive and late-cut - and looked increasingly confident against the old ball on a slow track.
The three spinners bowled 15 consecutive overs between them in the second session and conceded 54 runs. Overall, the second session yielded 120 runs in 31 overs.
When Pujara drove Mehedi straight down the ground for four in the 51st over, he broke the record for most runs in an Indian first-class season, surpassing Chandu Borde's tally of 1604 in 1964-65. The joy, though, was short-lived as he misread the next delivery - a straight ball from Mehedi - and edged behind, Mushfiqur diving to his right this time and pouching it via a ricochet off the pad.
Kohli announced himself with authoritative boundaries, while Vijay got to his ninth Test hundred before being bowled around his legs in the sixth over after tea.
Ajinkya Rahane, picked over Karun Nair, seemed comfortable while moving to 45 off 60 balls in an unbroken 122-run stand with Kohli. Bangladesh, though, were far from comfortable: the fumbles continued in the field and they even wasted a review.
In the 62nd over, Taijul Isam tossed one up on middle and leg, and Kohli middled his forward defensive. Taijul and the close-in fielders reckoned it was pad first, only for the replays to throw up how embarrassing Bangladesh's decision to review the on-field not-out call was. The second new ball wasn't spared either, and Kohli went onto middle everything.
Day 2
India 687/6d
Bangladesh 41/1 (14.0 ov)
Bangladesh trail by 646 runs with 9 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Another series. Another double-hundred for Virat Kohli. The opposition buried under a mountain of runs. The theme first unfolded in Antigua in July 2016, then in Indore and Mumbai. On Friday in Hyderabad against a listless Bangladesh attack, Kohli became the first batsman to hit double-hundreds in four consecutive Test series. By the time they declared at 687 for 6, India had become the first side to rack up 600-plus scores in three-consecutive innings.
India's day became sweeter when Umesh Yadav dismissed Soumya Sarkar for 15 with a 142kph ripper. Sarkar was unperturbed by the outswinger, but was done in by a full ball, which snaked in off the seam. He attempted a limp drive and Wriddhiman Saha threw himself to his right to collect the ball. India challenged the on-field not-out decision with UltraEdge picking up a thin deflection off the toe end. Tamim Iqbal and Mominul Haque hung on to take Bangladesh to 41 for 1 in 14 overs at stumps.
A double-hundred in Tests might be the fantasy of several batsmen, but this innings from Kohli seemed inevitable. He arrived 30 minutes before tea on the first day and completed the landmark at the start of the third over after lunch on the second, swishing left-arm spinner Taijul Islam over cover, the first time he played a lofted shot off a spinner.
Probably Kohli's only nervous moment came on 180 when he was beaten by a sharp offbreak from Mehedi Hasan Miraz and was declared lbw by umpire Joel Wilson. Kohli reviewed the decision, with ball-tracking showing it was turning too much and heading past the leg stump.
Soon after making a double-century, Kohli was pinged on the pad by a low-arm slider from Taijul and was given out by umpire Marais Erasmus, at the start of the 126th over. Kohli opted not to review this time; ball-tracking detected the impact was marginally outside off.
On either side of Kohli's exit, Ajinkya Rahane, who was picked over Karun Nair and returning from a finger injury, and Saha, returning from a thigh injury, waltzed to fifty and hundred respectively.
Kohli and Rahane had set the tone for the day by extending their overnight 122-run partnership to 222. They scored 70 runs in the first hour as India scored 121 in the morning session.
Kohli toyed with the field and with Taskin Ahmed, who did not help Bangladesh by frequently erring short in a spell that read 5-0-38-1. Kohli lashed Taskin over the top to the left of deep point, and cut the next ball along the ground and to the right of the same man. When Taskin went shorter outside off, Kohli ramped him over the slip cordon. Mushfiqur Rahim followed the ball and posted a third man, only for Kohli to beat him to his right with a sliced four.
Along the way, Kohli snatched the record for most Test runs in a home season from his former colleague Virender Sehwag. Rahane played some sparkling shots of his own, but for most part he just did his thing - bunting the ball into the gaps - before he spooned a catch to short cover, where Mehedi dived to his left and came out with the ball in one hand.
If Bangladesh thought the wicket, which came after nearly 300 balls, was an opening, they were wrong. It was another false dawn. The ball suddenly started to turn sharply, and Taijul drew Saha a long way out of the crease, but Mushfiqur reprieved him. He had so much time that he missed the stumping opportunity twice. By the time he swiped the bails off on the third attempt, Saha was safe.
Saha relied on deft flicks and a variety of cuts, and went onto hit a fifty off 86 balls. R Ashwin looked set for a fifty of his own until he nicked Mehedi to first slip for 34.
Saha wasn't done yet. He was also deft in using his feet against spin, and one such trip down the track saw him stylishly loft Taijul over his head for a six and raise a second Test hundred off 153 balls.
That wasn't the only hundred of the day. Bangladesh's front-line bowlers - Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Taskin, Mehedi, Taijul and Shakib Al Hasan - all conceded more than 100 runs.
Ravindra Jadeja did not miss out on the fun either. India hinted at a declaration when he launched Taijul into the second tier beyond long-on and followed it with a violent slog-sweep over midwicket in Taijul's next over. In between, Jadeja was dropped by Tamim, running in from long-off, on 40. He cashed in and recorded the sixth fifty-plus score of the Indian innings. He celebrated the landmark with a signature Rajputana sword dance. How Bangladesh would have wished they had something to celebrate.
Day 3
India 687/6d
Bangladesh 322/6 (104.0 ov)
Bangladesh trail by 365 runs with 4 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
India made light work of the Bangladesh top order before fifties from Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, and Mehedi Hasan Miraz hauled the visitors to 322 for 6 in reply to India's 687. Bangladesh's most experienced batsmen, Shakib and Mushfiqur, sparked the resistance with a 107-run partnership off 165 balls. Mushfiqur and Mehedi, who scored his maiden half-century, then saw off the second new ball and stubbornly played out a wicketless post-tea session.
Glaring errors behind the stumps on the first two days had put Mushfiqur's wicketkeeping in the spotlight. On the third afternoon, his running was in the spotlight, and he was frequently caught ball-watching early in his innings, but he overcame it to progress to an unbeaten 81.
When Shakib danced out and drilled R Ashwin to mid-off in the 50th over, Mushfiqur was late to respond to his partner's call for a single. Ravindra Jadeja hunted the ball down and speared it to Wriddhiman Saha, who broke the bails. Mushfiqur had brought out a desperate full-length dive, but his bat had popped up in the air momentarily. The shoulder of the bat was seemingly on the line when the bail came off the groove. Chris Gaffney, the TV umpire, ultimately gave Mushfiqur the benefit of the doubt. He was on 18 at that point.
Mushfiqur then accumulated with sweeps while Shakib reached his maiden Test half-century against India off 69 balls. The scorecard will tell you Shakib hit 14 boundaries, but it was a chancy innings throughout. He repeatedly drove away from the body against the seamers and often drove out of the footmarks against the spinners. The century stand ended when Shakib skipped out and heedlessly dragged a catch against the spin to mid-on.
It was a repeat of his fateful shot against Mitchell Santner on the fifth day in Wellington in January when the Test was on the line. This time he gave Ashwin his 249th wicket in Tests. He was kept waiting for the 250th.
A sure-footed Mehedi took over from Shakib and ably complemented Mushfiqur's patience. Mehedi claimed 51 of the unbroken 87-run stand for the seventh wicket after Jadeja had removed Sabbir Rahman ten minutes before tea.
Mehedi dared to club Ashwin over midwicket and even picked a carrom ball and drove it exquisitely through cover. He got to his fifty when he late-cut Ashwin for four in the penultimate over of the day. In the last over, Mushfiqur became the fourth Bangladesh player, after Habibul Bashar, Tamim Iqbal, and Shakib Al Hasan, to reach 3000 runs in Test cricket.
Things weren't as rosy for Bangladesh in the morning session. Tamim fell in the third over of the day, taking on Umesh's arm from the deep. A mix-up resulted in both Tamim and Mominul Haque stopping near the middle of the pitch while running a second. Umesh swooped in from long leg, attacked the ball, and fired a throw to Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the bowler, who collected and under-armed adroitly onto the stumps.
In addition to being uncertain while running between the wickets, Mominul was uncertain outside his off stump. Virat Kohli reinforced the slip cordon and even posted a silly mid-on to apply more pressure. Mominul's tentative stay ended on 12 when Umesh trapped him in front with reverse-swing.
Mahmudullah survived a tight lbw call on 6 off Bhuvneshwar with India's review of Joel Wilson's on-field not-out decision returning umpire's call on leg stump. He managed to regroup to put on 45 with Shakib before Ishant Sharma had him lbw with an inswinger for 28. This time Wilson raised his finger, and Mahmudullah coaxed Shakib and reviewed only for ball-tracking to suggest it would have grazed leg stump.
Day 4
India 687/6d & 159/4d
Bangladesh 388 & 103/3 (35.0 ov)
Bangladesh require another 356 runs with 7 wickets remaining
Tests hurtle towards results on the moving day in India, which has of late shifted to the third from the fourth day. On a flatter surface in Hyderabad, the Test moved on the fourth day but decisively so towards India after only 12 wickets had fallen on the first three days. India took the four remaining first-innings wickets in one session despite an impressive Mushfiqur Rahim century, followed it up with a busy session to take their lead to 458 and took three second-innings wickets in the final session to bring themselves within sight of a win.
There might be some disappointed that India didn't enforce the follow-on keeping in mind the flat nature of the pitch, but India always looked like giving Bangladesh four sessions to survive, which was going to be a daunting task. In fourth innings in India, only twice have visiting sides batted more than the minimum of 125 overs Bangladesh were asked to bat. This was also only 2.5 overs fewer than what Bangladesh played in the first innings, only the second time they have lasted 100 overs against India.
It became all the worse when R Ashwin, who had become the fastest to 250 wickets with the last first-innings wicket 10 minutes before lunch, removed Tamim Iqbal as early as the sixth over of the final innings. Ashwin might have got just the two wickets in the first innings, but he was well and truly in rhythm bowling with the new ball against left-hand batsmen at the top of the innings. The rough outside their off stump had now become active, and Ashwin kept pitching just outside off, dipping the ball to make them stretch forward. This is when the natural variation becomes lethal as Tamim found out, bat-padding one that didn't turn as much as expected.
Soumya Sarkar and Mominul Haque kept India at bay for 16.4 overs, with India bowling seam at one end and spin at the other, but the introduction of Ravindra Jadeja brought a new challenge. Jadeja began targeting that rough obsessively, and in his second over he had the tall Sarkar stretching in front of his body to play a forward-defensive. This time the ball went straight on as opposed to turning, and Ajinkya Rahane took a sharp one-handed catch low to his right at slip.
In the next over Ashwin made it a double strike, moving over the wicket to Mominul and drawing a regulation edge. There was dip and there was a piece of pitch that came off when the ball pitched on leg stump. There wasn't much Mominul could do there. Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah then went through a nervous 10.5 overs to give Bangladesh a half chance of saving the Test.
It was quite different to how comfortably Mushfiqur and Mehedi Hasan had batted out the final session on day three. That calm was disrupted with Bhuvneshwar Kumar's reverse swing in the first over on the fourth morning. He did it each way: swinging the first ball in, the second out, the third in, and the fourth through the defence of the impressive Mehedi who had begun the day on 51.
Through some fortune and through some application, Mushfiqur and Taijul Islam batted together for close to 10 overs. Taijul faced 38 of those deliveries as Mushfiqur didn't farm the strike. Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma tested both of them with bouncers with Taijul finally gloving one through to Saha.
Mushfiqur might be struggling as a captain and a wicketkeeper but as a batsman he stood between India and complete and utter dominance of the Test. He had a hamstring issue towards stumps on day three, he had his gloves peppered, he saw his lower-order partners struggle against India's fast bowling but went on to complete a second consecutive century as India took almost the whole first session to bowl Bangladesh out. Along the way he overtook Habibul Bashar to become the third-highest run-getter for Bangladesh.
Mushfiqur, who had added only six more singles to his overnight score by the time Taijul got out, then got a six off a top-edged hook and started to score more freely. A misfield from Ishant at fine leg brought up the century. Mushfiqur wasn't done yet as he targeted Ashwin after spin was introduced only in the second hour, hitting him for two fours and a six. Jadeja and Ashwin remained persistent, though, and finally broke through. Jadeja's dismissal of the left-hand No. 10 Taskin Ahmed was almost identical to how he got Sarkar caught at slip in the second innings.
Ashwin then got to his record through a stunning catch by Wriddhiman Saha down the leg side off a carrom ball. The shot was on, though: the ball was short, Mushfiqur had only No. 11 for company, and he attempted a fine pull. He managed to just glove it through but Saha had moved well with the ball to catch it.
Having secured a lead of 299, India chose to give their bowlers a breather and batted on in the middle session. Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane scored quick runs, with Pujara hooking Taskin Ahmed for only the eighth six of his Test career. India scored 158 in the middle session to take their lead to 458. Pujara scored an unbeaten 54 off 58, and also batted with Saurashtra team-mate Jadeja for the first time in a Test.
Later in the day, Jadeja would go back to team up with a familiar partner, Ashwin, to strike telling blows.
Day 5
India 687/6d & 159/4d
Bangladesh 388 & 250
India won by 208 runs
Ravindra Jadeja's relentless accuracy and Ishant Sharma's swing ensured India dismissed Bangladesh for 250 in an improbable chase of 459 and secured their sixth consecutive series win in Test cricket, in Hyderabad.
Bangladesh's major source of resistance on the fifth day came via a Jekyll-and-Hyde fifty stand between Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who moved to his first fifty since July 2015. Facing a target of 481 - 22 more than Bangladesh were set in Hyderabad - South Africa looked to block their way out to a draw in Delhi in 2015. Chasing 475 in Indore last year, New Zealand attacked and collapsed dramatically. On Monday, Bangladesh did a bit of both and played out 100 or more overs in each innings for the sixth time.
Periods of resolute defence provided a counterpoint to periods of madness. Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah showed sound judgement outside the off stump against the seamers but threw their bats at the spinners. Mushfiqur charged at Ashwin's second ball - a non-turning offbreak - and drove along the ground for a risky four. Two balls later, he used his feet again, hit over the top against the break and holed out to wide mid-off. His wicket exposed the inexperienced lower middle order and added to the list of inglorious Bangladesh dismissals in the recent past.
Ishant Sharma then pinned Sabbir, playing his fifth Test, lbw soon after lunch for 22. Mahmudullah, who had sent Jadeja over the top for back-to-back boundaries in the 50th over, continued to live dangerously against spin. But it was pace that removed him. Ishant tucked him up with a chest-high short ball on the leg stump and forced a top-edged pull to long leg.
Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Kamrul Islam Rabbi saw off the second new ball and squeezed 17 runs off 85 balls, but the re-introduction of Jadeja produced the breakthrough. He found extra bounce and turn to rap the bottom glove of Mehedi, Wriddhiman Saha rising with the ball to complete another excellent catch. Taijul skied a top-edge off another quick fizzer from Jadeja before Ashwin completed the formalities in bizarre fashion, in an extended post-lunch session.
Ashwin's slider beat No.11 Taskin Ahmed, with umpire Marais Erasmus' review for a bat-pad catch returning no snick. Virat Kohli then chose to review for lbw, after which ball-tracking returned three reds to put the icing on India's cake.
Ashwin bowled only 14.3 overs on the last day as opposed to Jadeja who wheeled away for 29 overs and nearly bagged his second successive five-wicket haul in the second innings.
Like a popgun, he kept firing into the rough in an interrupted spell of 14-6-31-1, in the morning, including the wicket of Shakib Al Hasan in the third over of the day. Shakib's dismissal summed up the sheer enormity of negotiating a deteriorating fifth-day track in India. Jadeja got one to explode from the rough outside off, graze the top glove of Shakib and loop to Cheteshwar Pujara at short leg. Jadeja stuck his tongue out and flashed a naughty little smile. India pressed on to extend their unbeaten streak in Test cricket to 19.
India 356/3 (90.0 ov)
Bangladesh
India won the toss and elected to bat
M Vijay, who was reprieved on 35, and his captain Virat Kohli punished Bangladesh with contrasting centuries, which led India to 356 for 3 on the first day in in Hyderabad. Vijay combined with Cheteshwar Pujara, who was handed a life on 11, in a 178-run partnership, before Kohli seamlessly took charge of the innings.
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim termed his side's first bilateral international in India as a "great moment"; he might have later felt it was a wild roller-coaster ride. At the end of the day, in which Bangladesh's fielding went from bad to worse, they were left nauseous and with a teasing thought: what might have been?
Pujara and Vijay, India's most prolific pair in Test cricket in the last decade, extended their dominance on Thursday with another century partnership, their fifth this home season and eighth overall.
Kohli looked like he was on autopilot right from the moment he arrived, 30 minutes before tea. He began with two fours off his first three balls, the second of which was punched fiercely to the long-off boundary. He brought up his fifty off 70 balls at the end of the 73rd over, then brought up his next fifty off 60 balls with a signature whiplash to the midwicket boundary. Kohli now has a Test hundred against every opposition he has played against (he has not played against Pakistan and Zimbabwe).
Bangladesh, though, had enjoyed the perfect start to their first bilateral international in India with fast bowler Taskin Ahmed removing KL Rahul in the first over. Rahul chased a full, wide ball - wider than a set of stumps outside off - and dragged it back onto the stumps. Taskin and Kamrul Islam Rabbi then found movement in the air and off the seam, and took regular trips past the edges. They also sent down rising short balls, which forced Vijay and Pujara to throw their gloves in front of their faces.
At the end of five overs, India had only played four scoring shots. The first boundary arrived in the next over when Pujara uncharacteristically drove away from the body and sent an outside edge flying to his right of gully.
Four balls later, Pujara watched a leading edge drop in front of cover. About three overs later, Kamrul drew an outside edge from Pujara, which dropped well in front of Shakib Al Hasan at first slip. Mushfiqur could possibly have caught it had he dived to his right, but he was unmoved. Then, in the 15th over, Mehedi Hasan Miraz produced an outside edge each from Pujara and Vijay, which flew to the right of Shakib at slip.
Vijay's major reprieve came when he and Pujara found themselves at the same end. Kamrul put in the dive at square leg to create the run-out chance, and lobbed the ball back to Mehedi, the bowler. With the ball travelling slowly to him, Mehedi panicked and failed to collect the throw cleanly.
India enjoyed these breaks in the field but the runs began to flow only after lunch. Vijay drove fluently through the covers and launched Shakib straight back over his head. Pujara brought out his staple shots - the bottom-handed drive and late-cut - and looked increasingly confident against the old ball on a slow track.
The three spinners bowled 15 consecutive overs between them in the second session and conceded 54 runs. Overall, the second session yielded 120 runs in 31 overs.
When Pujara drove Mehedi straight down the ground for four in the 51st over, he broke the record for most runs in an Indian first-class season, surpassing Chandu Borde's tally of 1604 in 1964-65. The joy, though, was short-lived as he misread the next delivery - a straight ball from Mehedi - and edged behind, Mushfiqur diving to his right this time and pouching it via a ricochet off the pad.
Kohli announced himself with authoritative boundaries, while Vijay got to his ninth Test hundred before being bowled around his legs in the sixth over after tea.
Ajinkya Rahane, picked over Karun Nair, seemed comfortable while moving to 45 off 60 balls in an unbroken 122-run stand with Kohli. Bangladesh, though, were far from comfortable: the fumbles continued in the field and they even wasted a review.
In the 62nd over, Taijul Isam tossed one up on middle and leg, and Kohli middled his forward defensive. Taijul and the close-in fielders reckoned it was pad first, only for the replays to throw up how embarrassing Bangladesh's decision to review the on-field not-out call was. The second new ball wasn't spared either, and Kohli went onto middle everything.
Day 2
India 687/6d
Bangladesh 41/1 (14.0 ov)
Bangladesh trail by 646 runs with 9 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Another series. Another double-hundred for Virat Kohli. The opposition buried under a mountain of runs. The theme first unfolded in Antigua in July 2016, then in Indore and Mumbai. On Friday in Hyderabad against a listless Bangladesh attack, Kohli became the first batsman to hit double-hundreds in four consecutive Test series. By the time they declared at 687 for 6, India had become the first side to rack up 600-plus scores in three-consecutive innings.
India's day became sweeter when Umesh Yadav dismissed Soumya Sarkar for 15 with a 142kph ripper. Sarkar was unperturbed by the outswinger, but was done in by a full ball, which snaked in off the seam. He attempted a limp drive and Wriddhiman Saha threw himself to his right to collect the ball. India challenged the on-field not-out decision with UltraEdge picking up a thin deflection off the toe end. Tamim Iqbal and Mominul Haque hung on to take Bangladesh to 41 for 1 in 14 overs at stumps.
A double-hundred in Tests might be the fantasy of several batsmen, but this innings from Kohli seemed inevitable. He arrived 30 minutes before tea on the first day and completed the landmark at the start of the third over after lunch on the second, swishing left-arm spinner Taijul Islam over cover, the first time he played a lofted shot off a spinner.
Probably Kohli's only nervous moment came on 180 when he was beaten by a sharp offbreak from Mehedi Hasan Miraz and was declared lbw by umpire Joel Wilson. Kohli reviewed the decision, with ball-tracking showing it was turning too much and heading past the leg stump.
Soon after making a double-century, Kohli was pinged on the pad by a low-arm slider from Taijul and was given out by umpire Marais Erasmus, at the start of the 126th over. Kohli opted not to review this time; ball-tracking detected the impact was marginally outside off.
On either side of Kohli's exit, Ajinkya Rahane, who was picked over Karun Nair and returning from a finger injury, and Saha, returning from a thigh injury, waltzed to fifty and hundred respectively.
Kohli and Rahane had set the tone for the day by extending their overnight 122-run partnership to 222. They scored 70 runs in the first hour as India scored 121 in the morning session.
Kohli toyed with the field and with Taskin Ahmed, who did not help Bangladesh by frequently erring short in a spell that read 5-0-38-1. Kohli lashed Taskin over the top to the left of deep point, and cut the next ball along the ground and to the right of the same man. When Taskin went shorter outside off, Kohli ramped him over the slip cordon. Mushfiqur Rahim followed the ball and posted a third man, only for Kohli to beat him to his right with a sliced four.
Along the way, Kohli snatched the record for most Test runs in a home season from his former colleague Virender Sehwag. Rahane played some sparkling shots of his own, but for most part he just did his thing - bunting the ball into the gaps - before he spooned a catch to short cover, where Mehedi dived to his left and came out with the ball in one hand.
If Bangladesh thought the wicket, which came after nearly 300 balls, was an opening, they were wrong. It was another false dawn. The ball suddenly started to turn sharply, and Taijul drew Saha a long way out of the crease, but Mushfiqur reprieved him. He had so much time that he missed the stumping opportunity twice. By the time he swiped the bails off on the third attempt, Saha was safe.
Saha relied on deft flicks and a variety of cuts, and went onto hit a fifty off 86 balls. R Ashwin looked set for a fifty of his own until he nicked Mehedi to first slip for 34.
Saha wasn't done yet. He was also deft in using his feet against spin, and one such trip down the track saw him stylishly loft Taijul over his head for a six and raise a second Test hundred off 153 balls.
That wasn't the only hundred of the day. Bangladesh's front-line bowlers - Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Taskin, Mehedi, Taijul and Shakib Al Hasan - all conceded more than 100 runs.
Ravindra Jadeja did not miss out on the fun either. India hinted at a declaration when he launched Taijul into the second tier beyond long-on and followed it with a violent slog-sweep over midwicket in Taijul's next over. In between, Jadeja was dropped by Tamim, running in from long-off, on 40. He cashed in and recorded the sixth fifty-plus score of the Indian innings. He celebrated the landmark with a signature Rajputana sword dance. How Bangladesh would have wished they had something to celebrate.
Day 3
India 687/6d
Bangladesh 322/6 (104.0 ov)
Bangladesh trail by 365 runs with 4 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
India made light work of the Bangladesh top order before fifties from Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, and Mehedi Hasan Miraz hauled the visitors to 322 for 6 in reply to India's 687. Bangladesh's most experienced batsmen, Shakib and Mushfiqur, sparked the resistance with a 107-run partnership off 165 balls. Mushfiqur and Mehedi, who scored his maiden half-century, then saw off the second new ball and stubbornly played out a wicketless post-tea session.
Glaring errors behind the stumps on the first two days had put Mushfiqur's wicketkeeping in the spotlight. On the third afternoon, his running was in the spotlight, and he was frequently caught ball-watching early in his innings, but he overcame it to progress to an unbeaten 81.
When Shakib danced out and drilled R Ashwin to mid-off in the 50th over, Mushfiqur was late to respond to his partner's call for a single. Ravindra Jadeja hunted the ball down and speared it to Wriddhiman Saha, who broke the bails. Mushfiqur had brought out a desperate full-length dive, but his bat had popped up in the air momentarily. The shoulder of the bat was seemingly on the line when the bail came off the groove. Chris Gaffney, the TV umpire, ultimately gave Mushfiqur the benefit of the doubt. He was on 18 at that point.
Mushfiqur then accumulated with sweeps while Shakib reached his maiden Test half-century against India off 69 balls. The scorecard will tell you Shakib hit 14 boundaries, but it was a chancy innings throughout. He repeatedly drove away from the body against the seamers and often drove out of the footmarks against the spinners. The century stand ended when Shakib skipped out and heedlessly dragged a catch against the spin to mid-on.
It was a repeat of his fateful shot against Mitchell Santner on the fifth day in Wellington in January when the Test was on the line. This time he gave Ashwin his 249th wicket in Tests. He was kept waiting for the 250th.
A sure-footed Mehedi took over from Shakib and ably complemented Mushfiqur's patience. Mehedi claimed 51 of the unbroken 87-run stand for the seventh wicket after Jadeja had removed Sabbir Rahman ten minutes before tea.
Mehedi dared to club Ashwin over midwicket and even picked a carrom ball and drove it exquisitely through cover. He got to his fifty when he late-cut Ashwin for four in the penultimate over of the day. In the last over, Mushfiqur became the fourth Bangladesh player, after Habibul Bashar, Tamim Iqbal, and Shakib Al Hasan, to reach 3000 runs in Test cricket.
Things weren't as rosy for Bangladesh in the morning session. Tamim fell in the third over of the day, taking on Umesh's arm from the deep. A mix-up resulted in both Tamim and Mominul Haque stopping near the middle of the pitch while running a second. Umesh swooped in from long leg, attacked the ball, and fired a throw to Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the bowler, who collected and under-armed adroitly onto the stumps.
In addition to being uncertain while running between the wickets, Mominul was uncertain outside his off stump. Virat Kohli reinforced the slip cordon and even posted a silly mid-on to apply more pressure. Mominul's tentative stay ended on 12 when Umesh trapped him in front with reverse-swing.
Mahmudullah survived a tight lbw call on 6 off Bhuvneshwar with India's review of Joel Wilson's on-field not-out decision returning umpire's call on leg stump. He managed to regroup to put on 45 with Shakib before Ishant Sharma had him lbw with an inswinger for 28. This time Wilson raised his finger, and Mahmudullah coaxed Shakib and reviewed only for ball-tracking to suggest it would have grazed leg stump.
Day 4
India 687/6d & 159/4d
Bangladesh 388 & 103/3 (35.0 ov)
Bangladesh require another 356 runs with 7 wickets remaining
Tests hurtle towards results on the moving day in India, which has of late shifted to the third from the fourth day. On a flatter surface in Hyderabad, the Test moved on the fourth day but decisively so towards India after only 12 wickets had fallen on the first three days. India took the four remaining first-innings wickets in one session despite an impressive Mushfiqur Rahim century, followed it up with a busy session to take their lead to 458 and took three second-innings wickets in the final session to bring themselves within sight of a win.
There might be some disappointed that India didn't enforce the follow-on keeping in mind the flat nature of the pitch, but India always looked like giving Bangladesh four sessions to survive, which was going to be a daunting task. In fourth innings in India, only twice have visiting sides batted more than the minimum of 125 overs Bangladesh were asked to bat. This was also only 2.5 overs fewer than what Bangladesh played in the first innings, only the second time they have lasted 100 overs against India.
It became all the worse when R Ashwin, who had become the fastest to 250 wickets with the last first-innings wicket 10 minutes before lunch, removed Tamim Iqbal as early as the sixth over of the final innings. Ashwin might have got just the two wickets in the first innings, but he was well and truly in rhythm bowling with the new ball against left-hand batsmen at the top of the innings. The rough outside their off stump had now become active, and Ashwin kept pitching just outside off, dipping the ball to make them stretch forward. This is when the natural variation becomes lethal as Tamim found out, bat-padding one that didn't turn as much as expected.
Soumya Sarkar and Mominul Haque kept India at bay for 16.4 overs, with India bowling seam at one end and spin at the other, but the introduction of Ravindra Jadeja brought a new challenge. Jadeja began targeting that rough obsessively, and in his second over he had the tall Sarkar stretching in front of his body to play a forward-defensive. This time the ball went straight on as opposed to turning, and Ajinkya Rahane took a sharp one-handed catch low to his right at slip.
In the next over Ashwin made it a double strike, moving over the wicket to Mominul and drawing a regulation edge. There was dip and there was a piece of pitch that came off when the ball pitched on leg stump. There wasn't much Mominul could do there. Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah then went through a nervous 10.5 overs to give Bangladesh a half chance of saving the Test.
It was quite different to how comfortably Mushfiqur and Mehedi Hasan had batted out the final session on day three. That calm was disrupted with Bhuvneshwar Kumar's reverse swing in the first over on the fourth morning. He did it each way: swinging the first ball in, the second out, the third in, and the fourth through the defence of the impressive Mehedi who had begun the day on 51.
Through some fortune and through some application, Mushfiqur and Taijul Islam batted together for close to 10 overs. Taijul faced 38 of those deliveries as Mushfiqur didn't farm the strike. Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma tested both of them with bouncers with Taijul finally gloving one through to Saha.
Mushfiqur might be struggling as a captain and a wicketkeeper but as a batsman he stood between India and complete and utter dominance of the Test. He had a hamstring issue towards stumps on day three, he had his gloves peppered, he saw his lower-order partners struggle against India's fast bowling but went on to complete a second consecutive century as India took almost the whole first session to bowl Bangladesh out. Along the way he overtook Habibul Bashar to become the third-highest run-getter for Bangladesh.
Mushfiqur, who had added only six more singles to his overnight score by the time Taijul got out, then got a six off a top-edged hook and started to score more freely. A misfield from Ishant at fine leg brought up the century. Mushfiqur wasn't done yet as he targeted Ashwin after spin was introduced only in the second hour, hitting him for two fours and a six. Jadeja and Ashwin remained persistent, though, and finally broke through. Jadeja's dismissal of the left-hand No. 10 Taskin Ahmed was almost identical to how he got Sarkar caught at slip in the second innings.
Ashwin then got to his record through a stunning catch by Wriddhiman Saha down the leg side off a carrom ball. The shot was on, though: the ball was short, Mushfiqur had only No. 11 for company, and he attempted a fine pull. He managed to just glove it through but Saha had moved well with the ball to catch it.
Having secured a lead of 299, India chose to give their bowlers a breather and batted on in the middle session. Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane scored quick runs, with Pujara hooking Taskin Ahmed for only the eighth six of his Test career. India scored 158 in the middle session to take their lead to 458. Pujara scored an unbeaten 54 off 58, and also batted with Saurashtra team-mate Jadeja for the first time in a Test.
Later in the day, Jadeja would go back to team up with a familiar partner, Ashwin, to strike telling blows.
Day 5
India 687/6d & 159/4d
Bangladesh 388 & 250
India won by 208 runs
Ravindra Jadeja's relentless accuracy and Ishant Sharma's swing ensured India dismissed Bangladesh for 250 in an improbable chase of 459 and secured their sixth consecutive series win in Test cricket, in Hyderabad.
Bangladesh's major source of resistance on the fifth day came via a Jekyll-and-Hyde fifty stand between Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who moved to his first fifty since July 2015. Facing a target of 481 - 22 more than Bangladesh were set in Hyderabad - South Africa looked to block their way out to a draw in Delhi in 2015. Chasing 475 in Indore last year, New Zealand attacked and collapsed dramatically. On Monday, Bangladesh did a bit of both and played out 100 or more overs in each innings for the sixth time.
Periods of resolute defence provided a counterpoint to periods of madness. Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah showed sound judgement outside the off stump against the seamers but threw their bats at the spinners. Mushfiqur charged at Ashwin's second ball - a non-turning offbreak - and drove along the ground for a risky four. Two balls later, he used his feet again, hit over the top against the break and holed out to wide mid-off. His wicket exposed the inexperienced lower middle order and added to the list of inglorious Bangladesh dismissals in the recent past.
Ishant Sharma then pinned Sabbir, playing his fifth Test, lbw soon after lunch for 22. Mahmudullah, who had sent Jadeja over the top for back-to-back boundaries in the 50th over, continued to live dangerously against spin. But it was pace that removed him. Ishant tucked him up with a chest-high short ball on the leg stump and forced a top-edged pull to long leg.
Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Kamrul Islam Rabbi saw off the second new ball and squeezed 17 runs off 85 balls, but the re-introduction of Jadeja produced the breakthrough. He found extra bounce and turn to rap the bottom glove of Mehedi, Wriddhiman Saha rising with the ball to complete another excellent catch. Taijul skied a top-edge off another quick fizzer from Jadeja before Ashwin completed the formalities in bizarre fashion, in an extended post-lunch session.
Ashwin's slider beat No.11 Taskin Ahmed, with umpire Marais Erasmus' review for a bat-pad catch returning no snick. Virat Kohli then chose to review for lbw, after which ball-tracking returned three reds to put the icing on India's cake.
Ashwin bowled only 14.3 overs on the last day as opposed to Jadeja who wheeled away for 29 overs and nearly bagged his second successive five-wicket haul in the second innings.
Like a popgun, he kept firing into the rough in an interrupted spell of 14-6-31-1, in the morning, including the wicket of Shakib Al Hasan in the third over of the day. Shakib's dismissal summed up the sheer enormity of negotiating a deteriorating fifth-day track in India. Jadeja got one to explode from the rough outside off, graze the top glove of Shakib and loop to Cheteshwar Pujara at short leg. Jadeja stuck his tongue out and flashed a naughty little smile. India pressed on to extend their unbeaten streak in Test cricket to 19.
Friday 10 February 2017
5th ODI SA 5-0 SL (SA no.1 ODI team)
South Africa 384/6 (50.0 ov)
Sri Lanka 296/8 (50.0 ov)
South Africa won by 88 runs
South Africa rode a roaring 187-run first-wicket stand and two effortless centuries from their openers to a monumental 384 for 6 and, eventually, the No. 1 ODI ranking. Their reward for winning an 11th ODI on the trot was the unseating of Australia - whom they had also thrashed 5-0 at home last year - and moving one point clear at the top of the table.
South Africa's dominance of Sri Lanka in this series has been complete. They outbatted, outbowled and outfielded the visitors again, and this win - an 88-run thumping - was a fitting finish. The only consolations for Sri Lanka were Asela Gunaratne's hard-earned-but-inconsequential maiden century, as well as having batted 50 overs for the first time in the series.
If Quinton de Kock was the early aggressor, taking the innings by the collar inside the Powerplay, Hashim Amla bided his time, and only later fashioned violence from timing and grace. Amla embraced all-out attack only after reaching triple figures, but even at his most belligerent, did not lose the characteristic zen. The head stayed steady and the wrists whipped through the ball at the point of contact. His 154 from 134 deliveries was his second-highest ODI score, and again helped showcase the awesome might of this South Africa top order. Even on days when AB de Villiers does not fire, they can still make insurmountable scores.
It was thanks to more poor catching, more wayward bowling, and the general lack of menace in their attack that Sri Lanka found themselves stuck chasing the biggest score of the series. Though they had made something of the pursuit of 368 in Cape Town on Tuesday, they did not manage to stay in the game beyond the early stages of their innings this time.
Niroshan Dickwella flashed attractively for a 19-ball 39, but the rest of the top order fell around him. They were 82 for 5 in the 14th over, their fate virtually sealed, but Gunaratne and Sachith Pathirana sought to make the best of a bad situation by putting on a 93-run sixth-wicket stand. After Pathirana departed, the tail made it their mission to get Gunaratne to his hundred. He wound up with 114 off 117 balls, and Sri Lanka made their way to a somewhat respectable 296 for 8.
Sri Lanka had in fact asked South Africa to bat at the toss, and though Suranga Lakmal bothered Amla's outside edge in the early overs, de Kock quickly set about lighting the thrusters under the innings. He collared a pair of boundaries in each of the eighth, ninth and tenth overs. By the time the fielding restrictions ended, South Africa had sped to 71 for no loss, and de Kock to 47 from 35 balls.
When slip fielder Upul Tharanga failed to lay a hand on a catchable outside edge from Amla in the 15th over, South Africa were allowed to continue progressing at their hectic pace.
Tharanga did change his bowlers up regularly, in attempts to prevent batsmen from establishing a rhythm, but save for that edge from the offspin of Dhananjaya de Silva, chances failed to come. Both batsmen were severe on errors of line from the spinners, who collectively bowled quickly through the air. With little turn on offer, de Kock and Amla were plundering runs into the outfield off most deliveries, and rarely failing to seize boundary opportunities.
At the halfway stage of the innings, no bowler had managed to concede less than a run a ball and South Africa, at 180 for 0, were almost certainly heading for a mammoth score. It was in the 25th over that de Kock struck his 15th four of the innings - a powerful sweep to beat backward square leg - and went to triple figures for the 12th time in his ODI career. Few of his other hundreds would have come so easily. He holed out to deep cover soon after, though, finishing with 109 off 87 deliveries.
Perhaps in an innings like this, it is the likes of de Villiers, JP Duminy and Farhaan Behardien who are expected to take control of the death overs, but in fact it was Amla himself who led the final charge. Having timed the ball beautifully for the first 40 overs, he seamlessly incorporated power into his game after completing his 24th hundred in the 41st.
He carved sixes over point, slammed the short balls over deep square leg, and even struck cleanly down the ground - launching successive Lahiru Madushanka balls over the rope between long-on and cow corner in the 47th over. Having scored his hundred at slower than a run-a-ball, Amla smoked his next 54 runs in 22 deliveries. Each of his five sixes came in that period.
Sri Lanka's top order came out attempting to get ahead of their taxing required rate early, but wound up making too many fatal mistakes. Tharanga sent an outside edge to third man in the fourth over; Kusal Mendis picked out mid-off with a lofted drive in the sixth; Dickwella, after slapping and scooping merrily, was caught at mid-off as well. Sandun Weerakkody and de Silva did not last long either - the latter's modest tour of South Africa ended by a Tahir googly, which bowled him through the gate.
Gunaratne was slow to begin with but sped up after the departure of Pathirana, who had been the aggressor in their association. Having seen off the quicks, Gunaratne picked out the spinners to attack, sweeping and reverse-sweeping especially well, while the likes of Jeffrey Vandersay and Lakmal gave him company. He reached triple-figures in the 48th over - his second fifty having come off 25 balls.
Sri Lanka 296/8 (50.0 ov)
South Africa won by 88 runs
South Africa rode a roaring 187-run first-wicket stand and two effortless centuries from their openers to a monumental 384 for 6 and, eventually, the No. 1 ODI ranking. Their reward for winning an 11th ODI on the trot was the unseating of Australia - whom they had also thrashed 5-0 at home last year - and moving one point clear at the top of the table.
South Africa's dominance of Sri Lanka in this series has been complete. They outbatted, outbowled and outfielded the visitors again, and this win - an 88-run thumping - was a fitting finish. The only consolations for Sri Lanka were Asela Gunaratne's hard-earned-but-inconsequential maiden century, as well as having batted 50 overs for the first time in the series.
If Quinton de Kock was the early aggressor, taking the innings by the collar inside the Powerplay, Hashim Amla bided his time, and only later fashioned violence from timing and grace. Amla embraced all-out attack only after reaching triple figures, but even at his most belligerent, did not lose the characteristic zen. The head stayed steady and the wrists whipped through the ball at the point of contact. His 154 from 134 deliveries was his second-highest ODI score, and again helped showcase the awesome might of this South Africa top order. Even on days when AB de Villiers does not fire, they can still make insurmountable scores.
It was thanks to more poor catching, more wayward bowling, and the general lack of menace in their attack that Sri Lanka found themselves stuck chasing the biggest score of the series. Though they had made something of the pursuit of 368 in Cape Town on Tuesday, they did not manage to stay in the game beyond the early stages of their innings this time.
Niroshan Dickwella flashed attractively for a 19-ball 39, but the rest of the top order fell around him. They were 82 for 5 in the 14th over, their fate virtually sealed, but Gunaratne and Sachith Pathirana sought to make the best of a bad situation by putting on a 93-run sixth-wicket stand. After Pathirana departed, the tail made it their mission to get Gunaratne to his hundred. He wound up with 114 off 117 balls, and Sri Lanka made their way to a somewhat respectable 296 for 8.
Sri Lanka had in fact asked South Africa to bat at the toss, and though Suranga Lakmal bothered Amla's outside edge in the early overs, de Kock quickly set about lighting the thrusters under the innings. He collared a pair of boundaries in each of the eighth, ninth and tenth overs. By the time the fielding restrictions ended, South Africa had sped to 71 for no loss, and de Kock to 47 from 35 balls.
When slip fielder Upul Tharanga failed to lay a hand on a catchable outside edge from Amla in the 15th over, South Africa were allowed to continue progressing at their hectic pace.
Tharanga did change his bowlers up regularly, in attempts to prevent batsmen from establishing a rhythm, but save for that edge from the offspin of Dhananjaya de Silva, chances failed to come. Both batsmen were severe on errors of line from the spinners, who collectively bowled quickly through the air. With little turn on offer, de Kock and Amla were plundering runs into the outfield off most deliveries, and rarely failing to seize boundary opportunities.
At the halfway stage of the innings, no bowler had managed to concede less than a run a ball and South Africa, at 180 for 0, were almost certainly heading for a mammoth score. It was in the 25th over that de Kock struck his 15th four of the innings - a powerful sweep to beat backward square leg - and went to triple figures for the 12th time in his ODI career. Few of his other hundreds would have come so easily. He holed out to deep cover soon after, though, finishing with 109 off 87 deliveries.
Perhaps in an innings like this, it is the likes of de Villiers, JP Duminy and Farhaan Behardien who are expected to take control of the death overs, but in fact it was Amla himself who led the final charge. Having timed the ball beautifully for the first 40 overs, he seamlessly incorporated power into his game after completing his 24th hundred in the 41st.
He carved sixes over point, slammed the short balls over deep square leg, and even struck cleanly down the ground - launching successive Lahiru Madushanka balls over the rope between long-on and cow corner in the 47th over. Having scored his hundred at slower than a run-a-ball, Amla smoked his next 54 runs in 22 deliveries. Each of his five sixes came in that period.
Sri Lanka's top order came out attempting to get ahead of their taxing required rate early, but wound up making too many fatal mistakes. Tharanga sent an outside edge to third man in the fourth over; Kusal Mendis picked out mid-off with a lofted drive in the sixth; Dickwella, after slapping and scooping merrily, was caught at mid-off as well. Sandun Weerakkody and de Silva did not last long either - the latter's modest tour of South Africa ended by a Tahir googly, which bowled him through the gate.
Gunaratne was slow to begin with but sped up after the departure of Pathirana, who had been the aggressor in their association. Having seen off the quicks, Gunaratne picked out the spinners to attack, sweeping and reverse-sweeping especially well, while the likes of Jeffrey Vandersay and Lakmal gave him company. He reached triple-figures in the 48th over - his second fifty having come off 25 balls.
Tuesday 7 February 2017
4th ODI SA 4-0 SL
South Africa 367 for 5 beat Sri Lanka 327 by 40 runs
A Sri Lankan line-up that was dismissed for under 190 in the first three ODIs and had not topped 300 in any format on the current tour of South Africa made a fist of chasing a record total at Newlands, but eventually fell 40 runs short. South Africa's batsmen filled the boots by posting the highest total at the ground, overtaking the 354 for 3 they put on against Kenya in 2001. It proved enough to extend their winning streak at home to 13 matches and put them one win away from the No.1 ODI rankings.
Sri Lanka opener Niroshan Dickwella and South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada have both been fined 50% of their match fees for breaching the ICC's code of conduct during the fourth ODI in Cape Town. In addition to the fines, three demerit points have been added to both Dickwella and Rabada's disciplinary records.
The two players were found to have been in violation with Article 2.2.7, which relates to "inappropriate and deliberate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other Person (including a spectator) in the course of play during an international match".
The incident took place in the 12th over of Sri Lanka's 368 chase when Dickwella and Rabada made contact with each other, after the batsman had completed a single, at the non-striker's end.
Since both players admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction imposed by Richie Richardson, the match referee, there was no need for a formal hearing.
Quinton de Kock scored his first fifty of the series, AB de Villiers his 50th ODI fifty, but Faf du Plessis stole the show. His second century of the series also made him the holder of the second-highest individual score by a South African, surpassing de Kock's unbeaten 178 against Australia in September 2016 and three runs short of Gary Kirsten's 188* against the UAE at the 1996 World Cup.
Sri Lanka's reply started strongly as Upul Tharanga and Niroshan Dickwella plundered 100 runs off the first ten overs. Tharanga went on to score the first century by a Sri Lankan batsman on this trip but was dismissed in the 30th over. It left Sri Lanka with a tough task of having to sustain momentum.
Sandun Weerakkody, playing in just his second ODI, ensured that by bringing up a maiden half-century to keep Sri Lanka within range, and even put them ahead of South Africa at times. After 45 overs, Sri Lanka were 317 for 7. In comparison, South Africa had only reached 317 at the end of 46 overs. But as is so often the case for South Africa, Imran Tahir came up with crucial incisions.
He took two wickets in his final over - trapping Nuwan Kulasekara lbw and having Weerakkody caught at backward point - to leave Sri Lanka needing 51 off the last four overs with just one wicket standing. They didn't get there, but neither have 22 other chasing teams in day-night matches at Newlands. Sri Lanka, however, put on the most runs among all sides that have attempted to chase down totals.
South Africa knew the advantages that could be gained from setting a target and chose to do that on a flat deck. Hashim Amla was dismissed early but that only gave du Plessis enough time to settle in and build an innings. He shared a century stand with de Kock by the time Sri Lanka could have their first drink. De Kock brought up fifty off 40 balls and was threatening more but added five more before he edged Sachith Pathirana to Tharanga at slip.
If Sri Lanka thought that would slow South Africa down, they were wrong. De Kock and du Plessis had motored on at a rate of 6.89; de Villiers picked up exactly where they left off and put on 137 runs with du Plessis at 6.90. Their contributions were almost mirror images of each other - du Plessis scored 70 runs in their stand; de Villiers 64. Du Plessis' fifty came off 46 balls with a drive off a half-volley. De Villiers reached his fifty off 51 balls, the delivery before du Plessis dug out a Kumara yorker to get to a hundred. De Villiers only added another 14 runs before being bowled around his legs; du Plessis did not give them any such let-off.
As his innings went on, he batted more aggressively. His first fifty came off 46 balls, his second off 43 and his third off 40 as he brought out everything from a straight drive back over the bowler's head to a scoop over fine leg, once in the same over.
Farhaan Behardien was not simply a passive observer. He scored almost half the runs (31) in a 74-run stand but was happy to hand strike back to du Plessis as he went in search of the record. Du Plessis wanted it and hit Nuwan Kulasekara for six in the penultimate over to overtake de Kock and then tried to repeat the feat with four balls to go. Du Plessis did not get enough power behind his shot and long-on took the catch to end his quest. For Sri Lanka, though, the damage seemed done.
Their batting throughout this trip has left much to be desired but with nothing to lose, they came out blazing. Tharanga and Dickwella, who had already scored two half-centuries on this tour, enjoyed the batting conditions as much as South Africa had. Wayne Parnell and Dwaine Pretorius opened the bowling, JP Duminy was given the ball when it was three overs old, Imran Tahir was called on in the powerplay and Tabraiz Shamsi was not used until the 14th over. By then, Sri Lanka had made their intent clear.
Pretorius made the first breakthrough in his second spell, when he had started to use the short ball more. Dickwella played early to a delivery that got big on him and he top-edged to Behardien at deep square leg to end a 139-run opening stand. Like du Plessis, Tharanga continued almost completely unaffected by a dismissal and brought up a 73-ball hundred.
At the halfway stage, Sri Lanka had scored more runs they had in this series so far - when their best performance was 186 - and had brought the required run-rate down to just under seven an over. Much rested on Tharanga though, especially when Kusal Mendis walked across his stumps and gloved a Parnell delivery to de Kock. Tharanga only managed two more shots in anger before he steered Parnell to backward point and Sri Lanka's challenge looked over.
But there was some depth to the Sri Lankan effort and it came in the form of Weerakkody. He started slowly and lost Dhananjaya de Silva to an lbw, but put on a 79-run fifth-wicket stand with Asela Gunaratne, the intent against Shamsi and Pretorius' short ball was noticeable. He brought up fifty off 46 balls to keep them alive. But Tahir had other plans to give South Africa an opportunity of inflicting a series whitewash.
A Sri Lankan line-up that was dismissed for under 190 in the first three ODIs and had not topped 300 in any format on the current tour of South Africa made a fist of chasing a record total at Newlands, but eventually fell 40 runs short. South Africa's batsmen filled the boots by posting the highest total at the ground, overtaking the 354 for 3 they put on against Kenya in 2001. It proved enough to extend their winning streak at home to 13 matches and put them one win away from the No.1 ODI rankings.
Sri Lanka opener Niroshan Dickwella and South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada have both been fined 50% of their match fees for breaching the ICC's code of conduct during the fourth ODI in Cape Town. In addition to the fines, three demerit points have been added to both Dickwella and Rabada's disciplinary records.
The two players were found to have been in violation with Article 2.2.7, which relates to "inappropriate and deliberate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other Person (including a spectator) in the course of play during an international match".
The incident took place in the 12th over of Sri Lanka's 368 chase when Dickwella and Rabada made contact with each other, after the batsman had completed a single, at the non-striker's end.
Since both players admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction imposed by Richie Richardson, the match referee, there was no need for a formal hearing.
Quinton de Kock scored his first fifty of the series, AB de Villiers his 50th ODI fifty, but Faf du Plessis stole the show. His second century of the series also made him the holder of the second-highest individual score by a South African, surpassing de Kock's unbeaten 178 against Australia in September 2016 and three runs short of Gary Kirsten's 188* against the UAE at the 1996 World Cup.
Sri Lanka's reply started strongly as Upul Tharanga and Niroshan Dickwella plundered 100 runs off the first ten overs. Tharanga went on to score the first century by a Sri Lankan batsman on this trip but was dismissed in the 30th over. It left Sri Lanka with a tough task of having to sustain momentum.
Sandun Weerakkody, playing in just his second ODI, ensured that by bringing up a maiden half-century to keep Sri Lanka within range, and even put them ahead of South Africa at times. After 45 overs, Sri Lanka were 317 for 7. In comparison, South Africa had only reached 317 at the end of 46 overs. But as is so often the case for South Africa, Imran Tahir came up with crucial incisions.
He took two wickets in his final over - trapping Nuwan Kulasekara lbw and having Weerakkody caught at backward point - to leave Sri Lanka needing 51 off the last four overs with just one wicket standing. They didn't get there, but neither have 22 other chasing teams in day-night matches at Newlands. Sri Lanka, however, put on the most runs among all sides that have attempted to chase down totals.
South Africa knew the advantages that could be gained from setting a target and chose to do that on a flat deck. Hashim Amla was dismissed early but that only gave du Plessis enough time to settle in and build an innings. He shared a century stand with de Kock by the time Sri Lanka could have their first drink. De Kock brought up fifty off 40 balls and was threatening more but added five more before he edged Sachith Pathirana to Tharanga at slip.
If Sri Lanka thought that would slow South Africa down, they were wrong. De Kock and du Plessis had motored on at a rate of 6.89; de Villiers picked up exactly where they left off and put on 137 runs with du Plessis at 6.90. Their contributions were almost mirror images of each other - du Plessis scored 70 runs in their stand; de Villiers 64. Du Plessis' fifty came off 46 balls with a drive off a half-volley. De Villiers reached his fifty off 51 balls, the delivery before du Plessis dug out a Kumara yorker to get to a hundred. De Villiers only added another 14 runs before being bowled around his legs; du Plessis did not give them any such let-off.
As his innings went on, he batted more aggressively. His first fifty came off 46 balls, his second off 43 and his third off 40 as he brought out everything from a straight drive back over the bowler's head to a scoop over fine leg, once in the same over.
Farhaan Behardien was not simply a passive observer. He scored almost half the runs (31) in a 74-run stand but was happy to hand strike back to du Plessis as he went in search of the record. Du Plessis wanted it and hit Nuwan Kulasekara for six in the penultimate over to overtake de Kock and then tried to repeat the feat with four balls to go. Du Plessis did not get enough power behind his shot and long-on took the catch to end his quest. For Sri Lanka, though, the damage seemed done.
Their batting throughout this trip has left much to be desired but with nothing to lose, they came out blazing. Tharanga and Dickwella, who had already scored two half-centuries on this tour, enjoyed the batting conditions as much as South Africa had. Wayne Parnell and Dwaine Pretorius opened the bowling, JP Duminy was given the ball when it was three overs old, Imran Tahir was called on in the powerplay and Tabraiz Shamsi was not used until the 14th over. By then, Sri Lanka had made their intent clear.
Pretorius made the first breakthrough in his second spell, when he had started to use the short ball more. Dickwella played early to a delivery that got big on him and he top-edged to Behardien at deep square leg to end a 139-run opening stand. Like du Plessis, Tharanga continued almost completely unaffected by a dismissal and brought up a 73-ball hundred.
At the halfway stage, Sri Lanka had scored more runs they had in this series so far - when their best performance was 186 - and had brought the required run-rate down to just under seven an over. Much rested on Tharanga though, especially when Kusal Mendis walked across his stumps and gloved a Parnell delivery to de Kock. Tharanga only managed two more shots in anger before he steered Parnell to backward point and Sri Lanka's challenge looked over.
But there was some depth to the Sri Lankan effort and it came in the form of Weerakkody. He started slowly and lost Dhananjaya de Silva to an lbw, but put on a 79-run fifth-wicket stand with Asela Gunaratne, the intent against Shamsi and Pretorius' short ball was noticeable. He brought up fifty off 46 balls to keep them alive. But Tahir had other plans to give South Africa an opportunity of inflicting a series whitewash.
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